Industry News
The Park City Professional Ski Patrol Association (PCPSPA), representing nearly 200 patrollers and mountain safety staff, initiated the strike on Friday, December 27, after contract negotiations with Vail Resorts broke down. At the heart of the dispute are wages and benefits, with the union seeking to raise the base wage from $21 to $23 per hour to keep pace with inflation and cost of living.
It does appear the the ski patrol strike is impacting operations.
“I want to acknowledge the reality of the guest experience at Park City Mountain over the past couple of days. We have not been able to open as much terrain as we would like to – and I know that resulted in delays in operations and longer-than-usual lift lines. The holidays are such an important part of the ski season, and my team works so hard to deliver you a great experience, that when we fall short – we take it seriously.
There are a couple of factors at play. First, we have not had the snowfall that we usually have by this point in the season. Our five-year average is 110 inches, and as of Monday, we’re at about 84 inches. Even with fresh snowfall, the lower snowpack makes opening terrain more challenging. Also, it is obviously very disappointing to have members of our ski patrol on strike. We have plans in place to safely operate – but there have been operational impacts from the union’s action. Each day we are opening the terrain that is safe to open with the people we have. Today, that meant lift availability on the Canyons Village side of our resort was limited.”- Deirdra Walsh, Chief Operating Officer, Park City Mountain, 12/30/24
“Moving forward, we will prioritize opening our most popular intermediate and beginner terrain first and delay the opening of expert terrain.” – Deirdra Walsh, Chief Operating Officer, Park City Mountain, 12/30/24
- Related: Park City Ski Patrol Officially On Strike Today | Likely First Ever Ski Patrol Strike in History
PCPSPA released the following statement on Friday, December 27:
“This morning, at 7:30 am, our membership hung up their jackets and walked out of the locker room and formed a picket line in solidarity to amplify our fight for better wages and working conditions.
Vail Resorts forced this walkout by bargaining in bad faith and repeatedly violating the National Labor Relations Act. Consistent with Vail’s bad faith tactics, after yesterday’s seven-hour negotiation session with a mediator present, the company continued to refuse to give a counteroffer on wages or benefits. They have had two weeks to prepare a counter-proposal.
Multiple unfair labor charges have been filed against Vail throughout this bargaining process. Additionally, the company continues to impose its anti-worker strategy by flying in scabs rather than coming to the table with a reasonable offer.
We are asking all of you to show your support by halting spending at Vail Resorts properties for the duration of this strike. Do not purchase day tickets or food from Vail-owned dining. Do not use Vail-owned rental shops or retail stores. Do not stay in Vail-owned hotels. Instead, buy and support local businesses!
We did everything in our power to avoid this work stoppage. Our goal has been and continues to be to secure a fair contract.
– Park City Professional Ski Patrol Association, 12/27/24
Vail Resorts argues that it has invested significantly in its patrol staff, citing a more than 50% wage increase over the past four seasons.
The union contends that the company has failed to present counteroffers on wages or benefits for over two weeks, leading to the current standoff.
Deirdra Walsh, vice president and chief operating officer of Park City Mountain, expressed disappointment in the union’s decision to strike during the holiday season but assured visitors that the resort would remain open. Vail Resorts has deployed a “Patrol Support Team,” consisting of experienced patrollers from Park City Mountain and other Vail-owned resorts to maintain operations.
“We are deeply disappointed the patrol union has walked out of mediation and chosen drastic action that attempts to disrupt mountain operations in the middle of the holiday season, given we invested significantly in patrol with their wages increasing more than 50% over the past four seasons, and we have reached agreements on 24 of the 27 current contract terms.
We want to reassure skiers and snowboarders, our employees, and this community that despite the union’s actions, Park City Mountain will remain open with safety as our top priority, and all planned terrain will be open thanks to experienced patrol leaders from Park City Mountain and our other mountain resorts.
In addition to the over 50% increase in wages over the past four seasons, the current Park City Mountain patrol proposal increases wages another 4% for the majority of patrollers and provides $1,600 per patroller for equipment.
Again, we are surprised by the union’s action given we had planned for a full day of productive mediation today before they walked out. Unfortunately, that will not go forward as planned, as our negotiating team must now shift focus today to operational continuity. We remain committed to reaching an agreement.”
– Deirdra Walsh, VP & COO for Park City Mountain
The Patrol Support Team has allowed the resort to keep its doors open, but it has also led to skiers and snowboarders potentially paying more than $300 a day, facing limited terrain and longer lift lines.
The poor snow start to the season hasn’t helped operations. Park City’s snowpack is currently 68% of normal, and a low percentage of the mountain is currently open.
We recently had the PCPSPA leadership team on The SnowBrains Podcast that went live today:
I totally agree. The Big Corporations have taken the fun out of skiing. A young family cant afford to take their kids out for a family day of skiing without taking out a second mortgage. In ohio to pay $100.00 for rental and a ticket is totally ridiculous for a 300’ verticle hill!!!
I was a former Ski School Director of a resort that is way off the beaten path, we never had enough ski patrollers on any given day. They dont get paid what is deserved and it hurts the customer. Resorts have been taking advantage of the love of skiing and the mountain life forever. However, not like Vail resorts has done.
When Snowbowl Az , a Vail resort, raised thier rates to 200 a day, all of Az was shocked. How could they do that? But it did increase business for the less exspensive resorts. Many have boycotted Snowbowl-Vail and ski somewhere else.
Let’s stand for all Ski Patrollers pay increase. We need them. I agree Boycott Vail resorts, make them take care of all Employees and lower the charges for the customers. Dont let Vail be the ones that close skiing to everyone. Let’s get back to an affordable lift ticket and move forward for better wages for those employees on the snow. This is not just a Park City problem, it is a problem for most resorts. Thank you Park City Ski Patrol for standing up to the establishment.
Here’s a detailed list of Vail Resorts executives and their 2024 compensation, based on available SEC filings:
Kirsten Lynch, Chief Executive Officer: $6,288,586
Salary: $1,086,908
Stock Awards: $2,456,356
Stock Options: $2,456,542
Other Compensation: $29,587
Robert Katz, Executive Chairman: $2,202,070
Salary: $1,086,908
Stock Awards: $1,091,661
Other Compensation: $23,501
Angela Korch, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer: $2,183,196
Salary: $688,896
Stock Awards: $1,467,293
Other Compensation: $27,007
David T. Shapiro, Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary: $2,162,634
Salary: $371,443
Stock Awards: $1,782,113
Other Compensation:$9,078
Gregory J. Sullivan, Executive Vice President, Retail/Rental and Hospitality: $975,715
Salary: $491,042
Stock Awards: $451,804
Other Compensation: $32,869
William C. Rock, President – Mountain Division: $1,652,847
Salary: $604,388
Stock Awards: $1,029,866
Other Compensation: $18,593
Disclaimer:
This information is based on publicly available SEC filings.
Well……. we’ll all be relieved to know that these shameless, soulless, ghouls as Executives at Vail (Fail) Resorts will be able to struggle through this strike knowing they’re paid 400 times their average company employee. I have no idea how shameful this sad sack of clowns can be, led by the biggest thief of all in Chairman Robert Katz and his Wall Street cronies…. stealing from the coffers of WhistlerBlackcomb for 30 years now. How do you sleep… $21-23 per hour pay to Patrol…..are you f..k..g serious….. how do you survive on that by yourself, let alone feed your family……
Deirdra Walsh could easily pay the patrol what they need out of her own salary and still live a life of luxury, Executives across the ski industry are grossly overpaid while workers can’t afford their rent and skiers are paying out the nose for tickets , food and everything else.Corporations are exploiting the love of skiing .
All Ski Resorts in the western US are street robbers. With ticket prices above $ 300 a day only millionaires can afford to ski in the US. Zermatt the best ski resort in the world charged $ 75 a day. The only thing to do is a strike of all resorts for at least a year.
Yes! Ticket prices 25 years ago were around $75. The corporate a**holes have ruined the industry.