Jasper resort workers vote 100% to unionize

On 18 April 2023, Local 401 of the United Food and Commercial Workers submitted an application for certification to the Alberta Labour Relations Board.

The union applied on behalf of all workers employed in ski safety operations and ski dispatch with RMSI-JTAC Equipment Holdings LP.

The Alberta-based employer operates the Marmot Basin ski resort and the Jasper SkyTram in Jasper National Park.

I reached out to Chris O’Halloran, the executive director of UFCW Local 401, last spring for more information on this unionization effort.

In a phone call interview, he said a strong internal working group of workers at Marmot Basin has been working on organizing their coworkers. They had reached out to several unions, but were most impressed with UFCW Local 401.

O’Halloran told The Alberta Worker that UFCW 401 presented themselves as a union that aggressively advocates for their members, more so than some of the other unions the workers had reached out to.

According to O’Halloran, it took only about two week from the time the workers reached out to UFCW 401 to when the certification application was filed. He reported that the workers had reached out to the union because they felt ignored by their employer.

According to an update posted to Local 401’s website earlier this month, the ALRB required changes to the application before they’d be willing to hold a certification vote. This motivated the union to reach out to their legal team to accommodate those requests, which extended the process by several months.

However, just a few weeks ago, the ALRB approved and oversaw a certification vote for these roughly 40 workers employed in ski patrol, snow farming, avalanche control, and ski dispatch.

Of the workers who participated in the vote, 100% indicated that they were in favour of joining the union.

According to Local 401, now that the workers are unionized, the next step will be “to finalize the issues to be addressed in negotiations, build a bargaining committee, and start discussions with the employer about making life better for ski patrol workers.”

Despite the seasonal nature of the ski industry, O’Halloran claimed last April that most workers have been employed at least one previous season at Marmot Basin. Even so, a collective agreement will benefit all workers, including new or one-season workers.