VAIL, Colo.—Vail Resorts plans to lay off about 50 workers and eliminate nearly 100 vacant positions following a significant drop in advance bookings.
In an e-mail to the company’s 3,300 full-time employees on Thursday, CEO Rob Katz said the company isn’t immune from the turmoil the overall economy is going through, even though it has worked to pay down debt and cut expenses.
Katz said the layoffs and job cuts will be in all of the company’s business units.
To save money, Vail Resorts will also suspend matching employee 401(k) retirement fund contributions in 2009. Merit raises will be deferred from Oct. 1 to Jan. 1 and executives won’t get any raises during fiscal year 2009, Katz said.
The Broomfield-based company operates four resorts in Colorado—Breckenridge, Beaver Creek, Keystone, and Vail— as well as Heavenly Mountain in California.
Katz said he didn’t think these cuts would affect guests visiting the resorts and stressed that employees must stay focused on making sure customers enjoy themselves.
“In this of all years, when our guests reach into their pockets to give us their hard-earned and precious money, they expect and deserve to be dazzled, delighted and whisked away from this tough environment,” Katz said.
Vail Resorts reported at the end of September that bookings were down 17 percent. Katz said it’s not clear how many people are just delaying their bookings and how many have decided not to visit the resorts at all this winter.
The company has been touting a new $579 unrestricted season pass good at its five resorts, compared to last winter’s $1,800 for its four Colorado resorts. It’s also giving out food vouchers for kids who stay overnight and a free night’s stay for a five-night reservation on a holiday.
Aspen Skiing Co. does not plan layoffs, but it is leaving open about a dozen vacant positions, most of which are salaried, said David Perry, senior vice president, mountain division.
