By BRITTANY CLELAN
An article in the March issue of Moonshine Ink highlighted the lack of employees available to fill certain jobs in the North Tahoe/Truckee region. As vice president of human resources for Squaw Valley/Alpine Meadows, which is one of the largest employers in Tahoe, I’d like to share more about our company’s ongoing proactive efforts to find talent and keep employees in our community.
These efforts begin with our compensation, perks, and privileges for active team members. To keep the resort operating, and to offer a high quality guest experience that keeps people coming back and spending money in our community, we need employees in just about every department. Quite literally, members of our team keep the lifts turning, and it is with this in mind that Squaw/Alpine offers the highest rate of pay for lift operators in the Tahoe Basin at $12 an hour.
To add incentive for those working in this critical position, we recently began paying an additional $100 per week to lift operators who work a minimum of 35 hours per week. We are still hiring for this position, meaning a new full-time lift operator has the potential to earn an additional $1,000 by the end of the season, while also enjoying skiing and riding privileges and some of the best spring conditions in the region.
Another example of how we’ve incentivized our employees includes the offer of complimentary fast-track ski instructor training for level 1 Professional Ski Instructors of America certifications. Upon completion, achievement of this certification increases an employee’s wage to $14 per hour. This season, we certified 49 new level 1 instructors, and our kids’ instructors received daily incentives when they instructed group lessons on peak days to sweeten the deal even more.
The perks of the job don’t end there. Squaw/Alpine provides free, unrestricted season passes to all part-time, full-time, and holiday season team members and their legal dependents. To make it easier for those living in Reno to get to work, we provide a free employee shuttle. Other employment benefits include discounts on ski team programs, a 50 percent discount on food at the resort, 25 percent off retail items, free equipment rentals for staff Monday to Thursday, and lodging discounts at the Village at Squaw Valley.
~ Brittany Clelan is vice president of human resources at Squaw Valley/Alpine Meadows.
