Vail Resorts CEO Kirsten Lynch published an extremely important letter to all employees yesterday evening. The letter addressed the numerous challenges that Vail Resorts has faced, and the steps the company is finally taking to right the sinking ship.
You can read Kirsten Lynch’s entire letter here.
Here are the most important parts of the letter:
1. New $20 Per Hour Minimum Wage for All Employees at all 37 North American Mountain Resorts for the 2022/23 Winter Season
- New $20 per hour minimum wage at all 37 North American mountain resorts and corporate.
- New $21 per hour minimum for Patrol, Maintenance Technicians and Certified Commercial Vehicle Drivers.
- New CAD $20 per hour minimum wage at Whistler Blackcomb, from current CAD $15.20.
- Guaranteed minimum of $20 per hour for tipped roles.
- Hourly employee wages will increase with compression adjustments based on leadership and career stage differentials.
- This represents an average wage increase of nearly 30% across hourly employees in North America
2. We plan to aggressively pursue building new affordable housing on the land we own, and pursue company leases in existing affordable housing developments, so we can make housing more accessible and affordable for our employees
3. We are investing an additional $4 million per year in HR immediately. This will add 66 more people to the central People Connect and Payroll teams. This represents an almost 50% increase in central HR Services staff, dedicated to the resorts in each region, with the goal to provide you with faster, more direct support in hiring, onboarding, payroll and case management, and a more personalized experience.
You might think I have something negative or snarky to say, but I honestly don’t. Well done Kirsten Lynch and Vail Resorts. You’re finally listening to the complaints of your employees, and it’s refreshing to see.
The news has even inspired the popular Instagram account @epicliftlines to temporarily retire. They’re waiting on standby, but for now they rest.
Here’s the post announcing the account’s pause in operations:
https://www.instagram.com/p/CbGUtVQuW8I/
Vail Resorts still has a lot of work to do, but the initiatives listed in Lynch’s letter are steps in the right direction. I just hope that the employees at these resorts will have some relief next season.
I’d still like to see VR cap their Epic Pass sales to prevent overcrowding, but I know that’s just a pipe dream. The company is beholden to their stock price, and capping revenue just isn’t really an option.
For now, and I can’t believe I’m saying this, well done Vail Resorts. Well done.