Telluride Ski Resort, closed since Dec. 27 due to a ski patrollers' strike, is recruiting replacement workers in hopes of reopening two lifts as soon as possible.
The resort added that a recruitment team has been formed to hire the required number of medical professionals.
"The goal is to hire qualified and experienced personnel to temporarily fill the gaps," resort owner Telski said in a statement.
Telluride Ski Resort has 17 lifts. The two that Telski hopes to reopen are lifts 1 and 4. Lift 1 goes to beginner runs at the bottom of the mountain. Lift 4 goes to mid-mountain where there is intermediate terrain.
The Telluride Professional Ski Patrol Association voted for the work stoppage on Dec. 23, and the strike took effect on Dec. 27. The resort then announced that the strike would require it to halt operations.
The union says the three-year value difference in its most recent contract proposal and Telski's last proposal is just $65,000. Telski says its most recent offer would increase wages by 23% over three years, while the union is calling for a 35% hike over that timeframe.
"We are always open to continuing discussions exploring how this offer may be arranged to better meet the ski patrol union's priorities," Telski representative Steve Swenson said.
Travel Weekly reached out to the union for comment.
Good intentions from third parties
Given the relatively small amount of money that separates the two sides, individuals have offered to cover the difference. In an Instagram post, the union said such a solution would be legally murky at best and would not resolve all of the union's needs.
"While it is great that many people would like to fix the issue by putting more money out there, it does not solve the issue of language, structure or security of a signed contract," the Telluride Professional Ski Patrol Association said in a statement on its Instagram account.
The union is instead asking supporters to contribute to its GoFundMe campaign to support striking patrollers while they aren't receiving pay. By the morning of Dec. 30, the campaign had raised $101,000.
Telluride is on the Vail Resorts' Epic Pass, offering up to seven days of usage for passholders.
Vail Resorts didn't specifically respond to an inquiry about whether it will make special accommodations for Epic passholders who travel to Telluride, located in southwest Colorado, during the holiday season.
"We understand the situation in Telluride impacts a small percentage of our passholders who are currently there or who have plans to visit in the near future," Vail Resorts said in a statement. "While we will continue to monitor the situation closely, our passholders with Telluride access can use their pass at any of Vail Resorts' properties, including its five world-class resorts in Colorado: Vail Mountain, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone or Crested Butte. Our teams are available to help support last-minute lodging reservations."