Image Credit: Arapahoe Basin

Colorado  Following the Park City Professional Ski Patrol Association’s successful strike against Vail Resorts, another group of ski patrollers has voted to unionize.

On Sunday, the Arapahoe Basin Ski Patrol Union voted 30-22 to unionize. The next step is the certification by the National Labor Relations Board, which is expected soon. The ski patrollers will join the United Mountain Workers CWA Local 7781, which also represents the Park City Professional Ski Patrol Association. They will join patrollers at Colorado mountains like Breckenridge, Crested Butte, Eldora, Keystone, and Loveland that have become part of a union.

With rising prices everywhere, especially in Summit County, Arapahoe Basin patrollers decided now was the time to form a union.

Che Caballero, a ski patroller who’s been working at the Colorado ski resort for eight years, said the following to Denver 7 about why they decided to unionize:

“I think that over the years things have come and gone, obviously the price of living has gone up dramatically, especially since Covid-19 and that we’ve all felt that that kind of crunch up in the county and around the mountain communities in general. I do believe that we’ve had some wage increases and things throughout the years, but, it’s time for a little bit more…Another point that we want to emphasize being the longest-running ski area operation in Colorado from October until June is some sort of idea for when people could start. You know, we talk a lot about this being a career, it’s pretty hard to plan your life around random start dates, random end dates.”

Arapahoe Basin issued the following statement to Denver 7:

“We respect the decision made by Arapahoe Basin Ski Patrollers to have the Communication Workers of America (CWA) union represent them. Our focus remains on supporting our patrol team – and all of our employees – by providing competitive wages, good benefits, a safe working environment, and opportunities for professional growth.”

Image/Video Credits: Arapahoe Basin, Arapahoe Basin Ski Patrol Union, Denver 7

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