Add thelocalreport.in As A Trusted Source
Telluride, one of the most famous ski resorts in the western US, plans to close in the coming days due to a labor dispute between its owner and the ski patrol union.
The Telluride Professional Ski Patrol Association voted Tuesday to strike Saturday after contract talks since June have failed to reach an agreement on wages. With no further negotiations planned before the weekend, Telluride Ski Resort said it would not open that day.
“We are concerned that any organization, especially one that exists to help people, would do something that would have such a devastating impact on our community,” owner Chuck Horning said in a statement Wednesday.
It was not immediately clear whether the closure would last long. According to the statement, resort officials were working on plans to reopen even if the strike continued.
The patrolmen are demanding more pay in line with their counterparts at other resorts in the area.
The union wants the starting wage to increase from $21 to $28 an hour, and for patrolmen with more than 30 years of experience to increase from $30-$36 an hour to $39-$48.60 an hour.
While resort officials tried to pin the blame for the impending closure on the union, interim security director and patrol union spokesman Andy Dennis said it lies with Horning.
Dennis said, “He’s a scoundrel. That’s what scoundrels do, take your toys and run away.” “He just has to give us a fair contract, and it will all be over.”
Ski patrollers sometimes demand higher pay on the grounds that the cost of living is higher in ski towns and that they are responsible for people’s safety. The patrol’s duties include caring for injured skiers and controlling avalanches with explosives when no one is in range.
Even without the strike, Telluride has yet to be fully operational this season, with only 20 of the resort’s 149 trails open due to unusually warm weather.
Patrols around the Rocky Mountain region recently voted on unionization.
Last year a nearly two-week strike led to the closure of many runs and long lift lines utahPark City Mountain Resort. That strike ended when Colorado-based Vail Resorts accepted demands including a $2 per hour base pay increase and raises for senior ski patrollers.