PARK CITY — Monday marks day four, as Park City ski patrollers said they are not giving up their strike for better wages and benefits. Park City Mountain Resort’s vice president and chief operating officer, Deirdra Walsh, said they are doing everything they can to come to an agreement.
“This has been a very challenging time,” Walsh told KSL-TV Monday, about how this strike is impacting them. “What I keep going back to is our commitment to operating this resort with safety each and every day.”
Ski Patrollers walked off their jobs on Friday, demanding higher wages and better benefits.
“We are not sure where negotiations will go from here, but we are hoping for the best,” said Quinn Graves, business manager with the Park City Professional Ski Patrol Association. “We want to get back up on the hill, but more importantly, we want to secure a fair contract for our whole unit.”
Graves said the main thing they are asking for is a $2 per hour raise for their base wage, going from $21 an hour to $23. They said right now there is no way to make a living as a ski patroller.
“We really want our whole unit not just to survive in an expensive mountain town, but to thrive here,” Graves said.
Walsh believes they have been very fair with their offer.
“At Park City Mountain Resort, our patrollers’ wages have increased 50% over the last four years. In addition to that, we have a wage proposal on the table that has a $1,600 equipment allowance in addition to a 4% increase,” Walsh said.
Walsh also pointed out the average wage for a seasonal patroller is now over $25 an hour, and that experienced patrollers with specialized skills at the resort make 35% more on average than entry-level positions.
“We were prepared to mediate with the patrol union last Friday and we were disappointed when the union instead took the drastic action of a strike,” she said.
But Graves said they’ve been trying to come to an agreement for months now.
“They can be disappointed, but we feel that Vail Resorts has forced our hand in this strike,” Graves said.
Strikers said on any given day, 120 workers are up on the mountain. But now, they said only about 30 to 40 people are up there, which Graves said means, “long lift lines, lack of terrain or not being responded to by medical professional as they normally would be.”
But Park City said skiers and snowboarders should not be worried about not enjoying their mountain and feeling safe.
“This is the holiday season. So, this is obviously a really popular time for skiers and snowboarders to come to Park City Mountain. We are really focused on operating the mountain safely,” Walsh said.
