Mixed reactions from skiers to the patrol strike at Park City Mountain

Some support the Park City Professional Ski Patrol Association, while others are frustrated. The union, which represents about 200 patrol officers and security guards, is on strike amid contract renegotiations with Vail Resorts.

But many climbers, particularly visitors from outside Utah, told KPCW they hardly noticed anything was different on Friday.

“We didn’t find out about this until we just got to the bus stop,” South Carolina resident Jamie Bunting told KPCW. He and his brother Daniel skied all day before they saw pickets.

The Buntings also said they didn’t hear skiers talking about the lift strike Friday. Scott Smith of Atlanta had the same experience.

Bennett Abrams of Baltimore had heard about the strike and expressed his support for the union, saying, “Pay them what they’re worth.”

“There’s not that much open. I don’t know if it’s because of the snow conditions or the ski patrol, but ultimately without ski patrol it won’t work,” he said on December 27.

On the morning of the strike, the resort posted on as avalanche danger increased in the Wasatch Mountains.

Jay, who owns a second home in the Park City area and declined to give his last name, told KPCW that striking patrol officers are “extremely selfish.” He claimed he experienced long lines at the Red Pine Gondola and met visitors affected by the strike.

“I went there with a couple from New Zealand. They paid $300 a day for their pass and said, ‘We’ll just go back to our room and just hang out or go into town and go shopping,'” Jay said.

He called it “poor planning” on the union’s part. The strike occurs two days after Christmas, and Park City government refers to the 11 days immediately following the holiday as some of the busiest areas all year round.

But Christy Bordy, who lives in Heber, believes the union “isn’t asking for that much.”

“I’ve had the ski patrol help me before, or they’ve helped my husband,” said the 25-year Wasatch Back resident, “and they’re always just great. I think they’re a necessary part of the mountain.”

The resort and the union reached a tentative agreement on 24 of 27 contract terms earlier this month but are continuing to negotiate wages.

The union wants base pay for patrol officers at all Vail resorts raised from $21 to $23 an hour to offset statewide inflation.

Park City Mountain says patrol officer pay has increased more than 50% over the past four seasons, outpacing inflation.

Park City Mountain has remained open, COO Dierdre Walsh said, thanks to other patrol officers on staff and patrol officers from other Vail resorts. She called the strike a “drastic action.”

The union says it is forced to strike because of delays in negotiations. It has filed unfair labor practice complaints with the National Labor Relations Board against Vail over delays.

The parties’ previous contract expired in April.

Vail has posted full-time, part-time and temporary patrol and mountain safety positions online as of Dec. 27, the day the strike began.

It is unclear how long the strike will last. The union has been raising money online to pay striking patrol officers while they are out of work.

KPCW’s Parker Malatesta contributed reporting.