Copper Mountain's parent company Intrawest announces layoffs

SUMMIT COUNTY — Intrawest will “reduce and re-align” its workforce, the Canadian-based resort company announced Wednesday, but officials did not specify if any of the cuts would be felt at Copper Mountain.

The layoffs come at a time when the company’s ski areas normally are hiring hundreds of workers as the ski season gears up with the big Thanksgiving weekend.

Copper officials did not answer calls Wednesday asking whether the staff cuts would affect local workers.

Corporate communications director Ian Galbraith said the company would not elaborate on how the move affects individual resorts.

A Steamboat ski area spokeswoman confirmed that the company laid off an unspecified number of workers in the northern Colorado resort, according to a report in the Steamboat Pilot & Today.

Intrawest also has a management and real-estate stake in Winter Park. The company refinanced a $1.7 billion loan last month but didn’t announce any cuts at the time.

Outside financial analysts who cover Intrawest said the refinancing deal could force the company to do some belt-tightening.

Intrawest officials confirmed the layoffs in a press release issued Wednesday afternoon, saying they would try and help affected employees.

“Like many companies in North America, Intrawest is not immune in this current economic environment. As such, we are taking the necessary steps to preserve our ability to be competitive and ensure our future success. As part of this process we have taken the difficult step of reducing and realigning our workforce,” said the statement issued by Galbraith.

Statewide impacts

Overall, a deteriorating national economy has trickled down to Colorado and Summit County. Statewide, the unemployment rate was at 5.2 percent as of the end of September. Locally, job-seekers are starting to outnumber job listings, according labor specialist Kent Abernathy.

“We are seeing an increase in dislocated workers,” Abernathy said. “But we still have a list of job openings not that different from past years,” he said.

At a recent job fair, the number of job hunters was up threefold from last season, while the number of employers looking for workers was down, he added.

It may be difficult for ski resorts to make any significant personnel cuts, said industry analyst Ford Frick.

“They’re fixed-cost operators. It’s hard for ski areas to lay people off and continue to offer full service,” Frick said.

Resorts need a certain number of people to run the lits, sell tickets and give lessons, he explained.

“It’s my impression the ski area operators are going into the year feeling lean and mean. But they may need to get leaner and meaner,” Frick said.

Most of the cutting may have been done in the form of not hiring, he said, adding that there always are opportunities for saving on personnel costs by consolidating jobs.

“You ask two people to do the job that three people were doing ... putting the same burden on a smaller number of people,” he said. “I don’t know anyone who’s not nervous out there.”

Grim outlook

Industry insider Jerry Jones agreed with that sober assessment.

“I would imagine everybody is re-evaluating their staffing levels out there,” said Jones, who has served as president of Keystone and Beaver Creek, along with executive stints at Snowmass and Sun Valley.

“It’s common sense. Even in good years, behind closed doors, you look at your labor costs as a percentage of expenses,” said Jones, now involved in the real-estate business in Avon.

Jones said the impacts could trickle down to different areas. Resorts may not be hiring the number of part-time patrollers and instructors, for example.

“Looking at the reservation numbers for March and spring break, why would you staff up to full levels?” he said. “You don’t hire to maximum capacity if you’re not expecting it. Payroll is the thing that kills you.”

Ancillary businesses could be hit especially hard.

Property-management companies in Eagle County aren’t hiring reservationists because they’re not getting calls, Jones said.

“There’s absolutely no doubt the economy is hurting reservations. I hate to say it, but it’s kind of grim right now.”

In an almost unprecedented move, some property managers are booking short-term stays during the big holidays, Jones said.

In some cases, reservations are down 50 percent from last year. One property manager told Jones that, during one recent span, he handled more cancellations than reservations.

“Everybody in the service-related businesses is tightening their belt,” he said.

Bob Berwyn can be reached at (970) 331-5996, or at bberwyn@summitdaily.com.