On a Saturday in December, the line for lift tickets and rentals at Juneau’s city-owned ski area was about an hour and a half long. Eaglecrest Ski Area managers say there were several factors that likely contributed to the unusual line, including that they are short-staffed.
Labor shortages, especially for low-paying jobs, have been common this past year across many industries. On the mountain in Juneau, starting pay for lift operators, food service workers and others is below the state minimum wage.
On Tuesday, Eaglecrest Ski Area was closed. But there was a fresh dump of snow overnight and a few dozen cars were in the parking lot. A trickle of people came and went, with gear for skinning up the slopes while the lifts weren’t running.
“We just hiked to the top and wanted to get some fresh powder in,” said Jake Hamilton, who also worked as a lift operator at the ski area last season.
“I honestly didn’t know how much I was being paid when I started. … I didn’t ask,” he said with a laugh. “I just wanted to ski.”
Free skiing and free transportation to work are some of the job perks. But the lifts usually only run five days a week, his work week.
“I ended up quitting ‘cause I wasn’t skiing enough. I wanted to ski more.” Hamilton said. “The pay itself wasn’t enough to sustain a living.”
“Staffing has been an extreme challenge this year, much more so than previous years,” said Dave Scanlan, Eaglecrest’s general manager.
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