Park City ski patrol union files for arbitration against Vail Resorts over paid time off benefit

Photo: Park City Professional Ski Patrol Association // Willie Maas

Three unionized ski patrol units say Vail Resorts granted paid Recovery Time Off to non-union patrols but refused to extend the same benefit to their members, prompting a grievance filing with a hearing set for September

PARK CITY, Utah — The Park City Professional Ski Patrol Association has filed for arbitration against Vail Resorts, alleging the company violated its collective bargaining agreement by withholding a paid time off benefit that was extended to non-unionized patrols at other Vail-owned resorts.

The union announced Tuesday that it filed the grievance alongside the Crested Butte Professional Ski Patrol Association and the Keystone Ski Patrol Union, both of which represent patrollers at Vail-owned resorts in Colorado and say they are facing the same issue.

At the center of the dispute is a benefit called Recovery Time Off, or RTO, which provides paid time off for mental health, vacation or physical rehabilitation. The unions say the benefit was granted to non-unionized Vail patrols in Colorado but has been denied to their members.

The PCPSPA’s collective bargaining agreement includes a parity clause requiring that health and welfare benefits extended to Colorado patrols also be provided to the Park City unit. The union contends that Vail’s refusal to honor that provision constitutes a contract violation.

“PCPSPA, CBPSPA, and KSPU have filed for arbitration against Vail Resorts for violating the Collective Bargaining Agreement,” the union said in a post on Instagram. “Vail Resorts has refused to grant these unionized patrols a benefit that has been rolled out to all non-unionized Vail Patrols.”

 

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The union said the filing comes after multiple meetings with management failed to resolve the matter, and follows what it characterized as public commitments by the company to improve its relationship with the patrol unit. An arbitration hearing is scheduled for September.

A Vail Resorts spokesperson disputed the union’s characterization, saying the company had offered to negotiate the additional time off through the existing contract process.

“The Park City Ski Patrol union’s wages, benefits, and other terms are set in their Collective Bargaining Agreement,” the spokesperson said. “When the union is seeking new terms, that requires a negotiation and an amendment to their agreement. We offered to reopen their agreement to negotiate the additional time off they are seeking, but the patrol declined. Instead, they are taking this issue to arbitration under the agreement, and we’ll reach a resolution through that process.”

The filing marks the latest chapter in an often contentious relationship between Vail Resorts and its unionized ski patrol workforce. In December 2024, more than 200 Park City patrollers walked off the job in what is believed to have been the first ski patrol strike in the industry’s history. The 12-day work stoppage, which began during the peak holiday season, drew national attention, prompted Park City’s mayor to publicly urge Vail to resolve the dispute, and caused the company’s stock price to decline as the resort operated with terrain at a seven-year low.

The strike also resulted in a class-action lawsuit against Vail Resorts alleging consumer deception, and a Vail shareholder called for the removal of the company’s CEO in the wake of the fallout.

That strike ended in January 2025 with a new contract that included wage increases averaging $4 per hour, a $2 starting wage increase for all members, and a parity clause tied to benefits at other Vail-owned resorts. The current contract runs through April 2027.

The union said the arbitration filing is particularly significant given what it described as a difficult 2025-26 season marked by low snow conditions.

“We are disappointed that Vail Resorts does not view PCPSPA as worthy of valuable time off to recoup in order to continue providing the highest level of care, especially following a particularly traumatic season due to low snow conditions,” the union said.

The PCPSPA is part of CWA Local 7781, the United Mountain Workers of America. Through the local, the Communications Workers of America represents unionized ski industry workers at 14 resorts across Utah, Colorado, Montana and Washington.

Vail Resorts, headquartered in Broomfield, Colorado, operates more than 40 ski resorts across North America, Europe and Australia. Park City Mountain is the largest ski resort in the United States.