Palisades Tahoe Ski Patrollers Take First Step Towards Unionizing

POWDER has learned via press release that ski patrollers at Lake Tahoe's largest ski resort, Palisades Tahoe , have taken a large step towards unionizing.

70% of eligible patrollers submitted a petition to the National Labor Relations Board requesting an election for union representation on February 26th, 2024.

The Palisades Tahoe Professional Patrol Association is joining CWA 7781, the United Professional Ski Patrols of America. They're now the fourth ski patrol unit to join this season.

The Palisades patrollers cite similar reasons for unionizing as patrollers at Whitefish Mountain Resort , Keystone Resort , and Solitude Mountain Resort :

"Ski patrollers at Palisades Tahoe hold an incredible amount of knowledge that is essential for safe day-to-day operations and world-class athletic events, such as the Stifel Palisades Tahoe Cup, which the resort hosted this past weekend. However, the recent loss of journeymen patrollers coupled with high turnover and high cost of living have made it difficult for the patrol to retain the institutional knowledge needed to keep themselves, and resort guests, safe.

“Given these facts, we have decided to unionize,” reads the Palisades Tahoe Professional Patrol Association’s mission statement. “Our mission is to foster a better and safer skiing experience for our customers by improving employee retention and honing our skills. We will create a mechanism to promote safe working conditions, training, education, and wages that reflect our unique skill set and cost of living in our area.”

The group has asked Palisades Tahoe and owner/operator Alterra Mountain Company for voluntary recognition. A Palisades Tahoe representative provided the following statement when reached for comment by POWDER:

"Palisades Tahoe respects the right of our employees to support a union or not in the workplace and we will follow the process for employees to express their desire either way through a secret ballot election. We value open communication with all team members and hope we will continue to have that opportunity through a direct relationship in the future. Our goal is to provide competitive wages, good benefits, a safe working environment, and opportunities for professional growth."

If successful, the Palisades Tahoe Professional Patrol Association would be the first unionized ski patrol in California.

POWDER writer Ella Boyd , and myself, call Palisades Tahoe home. We will continue to cover this developing story as more details emerge.

Related: Whitefish Mountain Resort's Ski Patrol Is Unionizing

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