Park City Professional Ski Patrol Association Goes on Unprecedented Strike - Support Your Local Mountain Workers

Photo: Connor Thomas, KPCW

Disclaimer: I have no affiliation with any unions or organizing efforts. I am simply a skier who cares deeply about this issue and believes it is something everyone on this site should be supporting.

This morning, the Park City Professional Ski Patrol Association walked out of their locker room and went on an unprecedented strike after Vail Resorts continued to bargain in bad faith and refused to give counteroffers on wages or benefits in the latest negotiating session. After nine months of negotiations, Vail had responded to the strike threats by flying in unqualified scabs from other resorts rather than engaging in reasonable discussions throughout the bargaining process.

At the same time in Colorado, the Keystone Ski Patrol Union and the Eldora Professional Ski Patrol Union, both formed within the last year, are currently engaged in initial contract negotiations with hostile employers who have also been obstructing the unionization process the whole way. Mountain worker unions across the West are standing in solidarity with these patrols, and every skier should be too.

I shouldn’t have to explain how expensive life in America is right now, particularly in states that are home to major ski areas. Comfortable, financially-secure living is not easy for most regular people, generally meaning those who work for a living. This is especially true for people who keep mountain towns running and make outdoor recreation available and safe for everyone. The cost of living in these areas has completely outpaced any wage gains made by workers over the years, and it has become nearly impossible for many workers to live within the mountain communities they support with their labor. On the opposite side, we’re deep into the early stages of Idiocracy-levels of corporate dominance of our society, as the bloodthirsty quest for profits drives decision-making that harms people and the planet and divides workers against their best interests. The time is ripe for collective working-class action.

Ski patrollers, particularly those at large mountain resorts out West where union efforts are focused right now, are without a doubt the hardest working people on the mountain, and probably the most important. The unionized workers at the center of these labor disputes are professionals with extensive training in a diverse set of skills that are vital to the operation of ski resorts. The jobs of these seasoned full-time ski patrollers are a little different from the work of red jacket volunteers patrolling for spliff-smoking deviants in your local Midwest park. From avalanche control, to terrain management, to serving as on-mountain medics, to search and rescue, to basic guest services, the list goes on. These highly skilled workers undergo countless hours of rigorous training to master these roles that keep everyone within resort boundaries safe. Resort skiing in its modern form would not exist without professional ski patrollers, and all our lives as dedicated skiers would be worse off for it. They are the reason we can ski the powder the Western U.S. is famous for. Not to mention pretty much all of them would rip any line better than you could.

Yes, skiing on the job is the fun part about it, but those moments of joy do not pay rent in high cost of living areas that have a shortage of housing, or buy food, or provide adequate healthcare and other standard benefits. Outdoor recreation employers have long used the fun experience as justification for low wages, but the modern economic landscape no longer allows this employment model to endure, if it ever even was sustainable. Current wages and benefits clearly do not reflect the levels of responsibility, risk, and expertise involved in this occupation, and the demands of these unions of professional patrollers are not unreasonable.

I won’t go into the full details of the current contract negotiations and the unfair labor practice charges against Vail, but the Park City Ski Patrol Union’s basic demands from Vail Resorts are for, among other things, healthcare stipends, medical and avalanche training incentives, fair compensation for returning experienced patrollers, equipment allowances, and a modest $2 raise to $23/hour, with annual cost of living adjustments. This is still not even close to a living wage in most ski resort towns, and these demands would be considered standard across most professional occupations. If you don’t think these are reasonable demands for an extremely dangerous and invaluable job, located in very high cost of living areas, that requires a diverse array of expert skillsets and often operates in treacherous conditions, then you may not recognize the value of labor today or truly understand the dedication and importance of these workers. This is ultimately about the hardest working people on the mountain receiving respect and just treatment from their employers, along with fair compensation and adequate benefits for the critical work they do.

If you are on this site, I assume it’s because you have a profound love for the act of sliding on snow on pieces of wood. These professional ski patrollers collectively fighting for themselves are similar souls. They are our hard-working neighbors who love skiing more than anyone. They deserve our support in the worthy efforts to improve their lives and working conditions by demanding fair treatment from their corporate employers because, as passionate skiers, our existences would be a lot less fun without them.

If you would like to support the collective actions of these underappreciated and underpaid workers, please consider donating whatever amount you can to the Park City Ski Patrol Strike Fund, linked below. This is one of the most effective ways you can help their efforts, as strike funds allow union members to cover basic necessities during work stoppages, providing essential support to workers while they continue collective actions to receive a fair contract. The other unions in Colorado currently engaged in contract negotiations with antagonistic employers are also asking for donations to support their bargaining efforts and union operations.

Join the patrollers on the picket line if you live in the Park City/Salt Lake area. Support local businesses in mountain towns instead of detached corporations and, as requested by the striking Park City patrollers, do not spend any money at Vail-owned ski resorts while they continue to oppose the fair treatment of their workers, including any Vail-operated restaurants, retail stores, and ski shops. And above all else, don’t cross the picket line to scab for Vail Resorts. Scabbing for a multi-million dollar corporation is one of the worst things you can do to your fellow workers. It weakens unions’ bargaining positions, prolongs strikes, and divides the collective power of workers. Don’t be a scab for any employer!

Spread the good word by sharing information and union posts on Instagram, this site, and whatever other media kids these days use. Let the resort owners know in whatever way you can of your support for the workers and strongly encourage them to bargain in good faith with the unions. Think about the meaning of worker solidarity. Talk to people in person and have conversations about the value of labor. Educate yourself on the long and ferocious history of labor conflicts in the U.S. and the benefits they have won for workers. If any patrollers are reading this, discuss with your coworkers about whether you feel respected by your employer and fairly compensated for the work you do. The success of union efforts like this cascades throughout industries. A rising tide of improved wages and benefits lifts all mountain worker boats, and the wins of one group of patrollers allow others to point to them at the bargaining table as examples of the respect and fair treatment they deserve. Lastly, sincerely thank a patroller for the hard work they do during the next pow day you’re enjoying, and maybe, if they don’t look frantically busy, hook them up with some nutritious food.

Donation Links:

Park City Ski Patrol Strike Fund: https://www.gofundme.com/f/strike-fund-park-city-professional-ski-patrol-association

Keystone Ski Patrol Union: https://venmo.com/u/Keystoneskipatrolunion

Eldora Professional Ski Patrol Union: https://www.eldoraskipatrol.org/checkout/donate?donatePageId=667b513f6795aa74aa2f442c; Merch: https://www.eldoraskipatrol.org/merch

@pcskipatrolunion

https://www.instagram.com/pcskipatrolunion/

@keystoneskipatrolunion

https://www.instagram.com/keystoneskipatrolunion/

@eldoraskipatrolunion

https://www.instagram.com/eldoraskipatrolunion/

@united_mountain_workers (CWA Local 7781)

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