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Colorado's ski areas tap labor sources

From college interns to new visa programs, resorts fill seasonal jobs

By Joanne Kelley, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published November 12, 2008 at 12:05 a.m.
Updated November 12, 2008 at 12:23 a.m.

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Workers practice evacuating a chairlift at Peak 8 in Breckenridge. Nearby Copper Mountain finished its hiring before the market meltdown hit in earnest.

Photo by Dennis Schroeder / The Rocky

Workers practice evacuating a chairlift at Peak 8 in Breckenridge. Nearby Copper Mountain finished its hiring before the market meltdown hit in earnest.

A snowcat yields to ski operation workers training at Peak 8 in Breckenridge. The state's ski industry estimates it typically employs more than 30,000 people.

Photo by Dennis Schroeder / The Rocky

A snowcat yields to ski operation workers training at Peak 8 in Breckenridge. The state's ski industry estimates it typically employs more than 30,000 people.

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Tim Ford has put college on hold to spend this winter at Keystone Ski Resort as a paid intern, a post that comes with access to affordable housing, leadership training and a free season pass.

The perennial scramble to fill thousands of jobs for a few months each year has the state's ski areas tapping a growing number of labor sources even as a weak job market has more local residents looking for work.

"It takes what it takes to operate a ski area," said Bob Chapman, head of recruitment for Vail Resorts Inc. "We certainly know there are going to be fewer skiers coming here this year but we still want them to have the same experience, so we're still looking at the same staffing as last year."

The Broomfield-based resort operator, which has four ski areas in the state, including Keystone, set up the college program in part to help deal with the annual pressure to find about 10,000 extra workers every winter.

While the 18-year-old Ford has been assisting with new hires in the Summit County resort's human resources office, he's already taken advantage of some of the job's perks since the slopes opened for business Friday.

"I normally only get to ski about four times a year," said the Westminster resident, who will be joined by about 200 others in this year's internship pilot program. "I'm going as often as I can now. Night skiing? I'm definitely excited to do some of that, too."

Vail and other ski areas have turned to a wider variety of visa programs this season. Vail and Aspen are among the ski areas bringing employees from other countries with Q visas designed to encourage cultural exchanges.

The once widely used H-2B visa program became a less viable option for ski areas when Congress declined to renew an exemption for workers returning from the previous season. Winter resorts typically miss out on the limited number of those temporary visas because the deadlines don't mesh with ski season.

The solution for some ski operators has been to apply for extensions for workers already here for summer jobs under the temporary guest work program.

"We were able to attract a handful of people from other businesses in our valley," said Aspen Skiing Co.'s Jim Laing.

Economic conditions have also helped lure some area residents to fill some of the 2,000 temporary jobs Aspen offers each winter. A slowdown in real estate development has left some local residents "with a little more time on their hands," Laing said.

The state's ski industry typically employs more than 30,000, according to industry estimates.

In better times, many ski areas struggle to fill their employment rolls.

"Last year was a difficult season to find employees," said Alan Henceroth, chief operating officer at Arapahoe Basin. "We put a whole lot more time and energy into recruiting this year. That policy change plus the weakening economy has reduced employee shortages so far this season."

Copper Mountain, which has about 1,500 working there at the height of the season, wrapped up its hiring before the market meltdown began in earnest this fall.

"Our major recruiting efforts kicked off in June," said Copper spokeswoman Lauren Pelletreau. "We are staffed and ready."

Generally, ski areas located the closest to Denver report having an easier time finding workers in part because they lack the challenges involved with offering employee housing in expensive resort communities.

"Our proximity to Denver allows us to tap into a pretty large labor pool," said Molly Mueller of Echo Mountain, located west of Evergreen. "About 75 percent of our seasonal employees did return."

But a few jobs remain open in most venues, perhaps because of the more spontaneous nature of those who might suddenly decide to spend a few months at a winter playground. "For Generation Y, six months out is a long time to make a decision," said Vail's Chapman.

Types of visas

A variety of visas allows some ski areas to hire a limited number of employees from overseas:

* H-2B: These visas allow foreign workers to fill jobs here temporarily but have been less viable for resorts recently because of limits and deadlines that don't match up to ski season needs. Some ski areas have been able to find summer workers already here on the visas, extending them through winter.

* Q visas: These allow workers to come for cultural exchange purposes.

* J1 exchange visas: These are issued for students and others for educational and training purposes.

Local residents more likely to take jobs

Ski areas have access to a bigger employment pool this season but still find they need to tap various sources in their annual effort to fill thousands of short-term jobs.

To find lift operators, instructors, rental shop workers and other employees, some resorts report having an easier time this season finding local residents to take jobs, given the weak job market. Vail Resorts Inc. launched a college internship pilot program bringing 200 paid interns to its Keystone Resort.

Comments

  • November 12, 2008

    8:38 p.m.

    Suggest removal

    jrhino writes:

    immigrations and customs need to go one step further and investigate the use of illegal labor in this industry and the towns. The money saved to the taxpayer for subsidy to illegal workers would help reduce state services in this area.

    It is time for some mountain workplace enforcment and employer arrests. When I grew up in Colorado these jobs were always filled by Americans. The ski industry just wants to get by on the cheap.

  • November 12, 2008

    10:15 p.m.

    Suggest removal

    windbourne writes:

    Such a mistake. The more low cost labor that we bring in, the more that it holds us back from automating a great deal more. For example, most of the base restaurants should be highly automated. It is actually easier to do that is realized. And yet, these places do not because of lower costs labor available via visa and illegals.

  • November 13, 2008

    3:01 p.m.

    Suggest removal

    flyerliftmechanic writes:

    One thing people either forget or don't realise is that ski areas hire the foreign labour they do because they can't fill the jobs with Americans. When enough qualified locals apply and are hired, the areas won't have to recruit overseas. This is the same problem that other tourist-related businesses, as well as construction outfits, face. There is a perception that many employers hire cheap foreign labour to save money. this may be true, to a degree, but when one has 150 job openings and only 100 Americans apply (some of which are not qualified), what other options do the prospective employers have? Our society has an unrealistic expectation of huge wages from day one, with no experience required and no skills. This isn't the way it works, and it hasn't been that way for a long time, if ever. There are a tiny amount of entry-level jobs in the world that pay well. Most jobs require time in grade, as well as addition education and skill, to make money. If we as a society remember this, we'll be more inclined to start at the bottom, work hard, and earn higher wages that way.

  • November 14, 2008

    12:07 p.m.

    Suggest removal

    dugbek writes:

    the fact is is construction labor is hard work that requires a good deal of skill. we are lucky we have illegal immigrants that can and will do it as young norte americano kids won't and can't. As to operating a lift, It is a boring job that also requires extreme skill when things go bad. We are lucky kids from the southern hemisphere are willing to help us with that. We need to expand the visa programs that help that happen.