Park City, Utah — After what seemed like a de-escalation of sorts of the conflict last week, it seems like tensions are picking up again between Park City ski patrollers and Vail Resorts.
Last week, it seemed like progress was being made, as the two sides agreed on most of the conditions of the new contract and also agreed to mediation. However, two things made things appear to be shaky again. First, The Park City Professional Ski Patrol Association filed unfair labor practice complaints against Vail Resorts. The second issue regards scabbing. The PCPSPA has received correspondence from individuals from other resorts in Vail’s portfolio who are coming in to work as ski patrollers.
A scab is defined as either a unionized member who decides to work despite their crew being on strike or a nonunionized member who works from a different location and is sent in to do the striking worker’s job. As mentioned in the social media post below, this is problematic because the workers from other mountains do not know the specific practices the ski patrollers have done to succeed.
However, Vail Resorts is claiming that some Park City ski patrollers aren’t unionized, and plan to coninue to work in case of a strike. Yesterday, Deidra Walsh, who’s the VP and COO of Vail Resorts, issued the following statement to KSL regarding the potential strike:
Park City Mountain has plans in place to safely operate the resort all season long. We agreed to the patrol union’s request to schedule mediation this week; however, the union has continued to state that they may call a strike at any time, including in advance of mediation. If the union takes this drastic action, Park City Mountain will remain open to serve our employees, guests, and the community. If necessary, we are prepared to deploy our Patrol Support Team, which consists of experienced patrollers from Park City Mountain and our other mountain resorts. We are proud of this team’s deep skills, certifications, and professionalism. Patrol Support Team members are provided with training and resources to specialize in the terrain area they are assigned. In addition, we have two on-site medical clinics. Safety is always our number one priority.
We’ll keep you posted here at Unofficial Networks on the latest updates regarding this dispute between the PCPSPA and Vail Resorts.
Image Credits: Park City Professional Ski Patrol Association, Park City Mountain Resort
