TL;DR
In a significant development, lift mechanics at Crested Butte Mountain Resort, a Vail property, have voted 7 to 3 in favour of unionising. This decision makes them the second group of ski resort lift mechanics in the United States to form a union, following in the footsteps of Park City Mountain Resort.
A different set of lift mechanics working at a Vail property have made the decision to unionise. On July 1st, the lift mechanics at Crested Butte Mountain Resort voted 7 to 3 in favour of establishing a union. This resulted in Crested Butte Lift Maintenance becoming part of the Communications Workers of America (CWA) 7781. They are now the second group of lift mechanics at a ski resort in the United States to join a union, following the example set by the lift mechanics at Park City Mountain Resort.
In May, these lift mechanics unanimously submitted union authorisation cards to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), seeking their support. This action aimed to facilitate a secret ballot vote, ensuring that those in favour of unionisation would be safeguarded against any retaliation from their employer. However, in order to avoid going through an election process, they needed Vail Resorts to acknowledge their union. As expected, Vail Resorts did not recognise them, leading to the subsequent union vote.
On Friday they announced on their Instagram: “We are happy to announce that today we officially became a Union! In a 7-3 vote Crested Butte Lift Maintenance Professional Union officially joined the CWA Local 7781. We can now meet at the bargaining table as equals. Together we will work on making this a safer and more sustainable career.”
