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CEO of Vail Resorts announces $20 minimum wage for resort employees

By March 14, 2022 | updated 4 years ago

On the Mountaintop Express at Vail Photo Credit: gladassfanny (iStock).
File photo of Mountaintop Express at Vail. Photo Credit: gladassfanny (iStock).
gladassfanny

In a message entitled “Letter To Employees: A New Direction,” CEO of Vail Resorts Kirsten Lynch has announced a series of changes aimed to better support resort staff. 

The letter comes after months of public criticism regarding the international resort company’s work conditions, including an online petition that has gained more than 45,000 signatures. 

“Addressing this requires a pivotal shift in our company’s direction with a new strategic focus on all of you – year-round and seasonal, hourly and salaried, mountain resorts and corporate. We are focused on providing each of you the resources and support you need to have an Experience of a Lifetime, and staying out front by making the necessary investments in you,” Lynch said. 

Vail Resorts will being investing an incremental annual $175 million into making the following changes, according to the letter: 

  • New $20 per hour minimum wage at all 37 North American mountain resorts and corporate.
  • New $21 per hour minimum for patrol, maintenance technicians and certified commercial vehicle drivers.
  • New CAD $20 per hour minimum wage at Whistler Blackcomb from current CAD $15.20.
  • Guaranteed minimum of $20 per hour for tipped roles.
  • Hourly employee wages will increase with compression adjustments based on leadership and career stage differentials.
  • This represents an average wage increase of nearly 30% across hourly employees in North America

Changes are set to go into effect during the 2022-2023 winter season.

The letter also addressed the issue of affordable employee housing saying, “Affordable housing in our mountain communities is essential for so many of our employees. We know this has become harder for you as those mountain communities have grown. We plan to aggressively pursue building new affordable housing on the land we own, and pursue company leases in existing affordable housing developments, so we can make housing more accessible and affordable for our employees.”

The company has also pledged to put $4 million toward its Human Resources teams annually.

Vail Resorts had previously announced that full-time hourly employees would be eligible for a $2 per hour bonus if they finish out the 2021-2022 ski season.

Whether or not all of these changes will be enough to satisfy those that have been critical of the company in recent months is to be determined. One indicator of public opinion may be the response from the @epicliftlines Instagram account, an account that highlights long lines at Vail Resorts properties. Upon the announcement of the new wages, the account posted that they “will hibernate now” and “will wake if required in future,” seemingly satisfied with the upcoming changes.

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Tamera Twitty tamera.twitty@outtherecolorado.com

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