The Telluride Ski Patrol Union has unanimously voted to authorize a strike if negotiations with the resort remain in a deadlock. Negotiations are set for today, November 25th, and for early December, according to Colorado Public Radio.
“It’s looking bleaker and bleaker. We still maintain a shred of hope, but with the signs and indications that we’ve gotten in just the last week-and-a-half or two weeks, it really doesn’t seem like the company is preparing to offer us a contract that’s going to secure the votes necessary to ratify that.” – Union President Graham Hoffman
The union is reportedly mainly seeking a pay raise to bring patrollers in line with comparable mountains while making up for lags in pay increases. They’re also looking for a health insurance stipend for patrollers that don’t receive health care through the resort. A statement from the resort says that the pay increase is “not feasible.”
“Telluride’s other teams also perform essential, difficult, and often dangerous work, including snowmaking crews, overnight groomers, lift maintenance, and lift operations, but the Resort cannot pay them misaligned wages. It is not fair to create a special compensation category for this one group under the threat of a strike.” – Statement from Telluride Spokesperson
According to the resort’s spokesperson, entry-level wages at Telluride are aligned with Park City following their strike and are equal to Breckenridge. The statement notes that both Park City and Breckenridge serve more skiers than Telluride due to its remote location. Breckenridge apparently sees three times the number of skier days in a season despite being about the same size.
Union President Graham Hoffman stated that the Park City comparison is incorrect and, further, while mountains like Breckenridge might see more skiers, Telluride has more challenging terrain that requires more institutional knowledge.
Negotiations between the resort are set to continue ahead of Telluride’s scheduled opening on Saturday, December 6th.
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