Levi ski resort tries to wiggle its way out of impending strike (UPDATED - Levi successful; World Cup to go ahead)

Organisers hope to put on upcoming World Cup slalom event in spite of industrial action

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The Lapland ski resort of Levi is trying to use all its leverage to ensure that the FIS Alpine Ski World Cup event scheduled for November 14th and 15th would be a success.
      Levi has entered into negotiations, the purpose of which is to ensure the resort would remain outside the scope of the ski resort employees’ upcoming strike.
      The industrial action scheduled for next week concerns the entire ski resort branch.
     
According to information received by Helsingin Sanomat, directors of the Levi resort and representatives of Service Union United PAM, a union for employees working in the private service sectors, will discuss the possible curtailments to the strike on Friday morning in Helsinki.
      PAM chairwoman Ann Selin was reluctant to comment on the matter.
      “The negotiations will continue on Monday led by the National Conciliator”, she stated simply.
     
The ski resort workers, whose previous collective labour agreement expired in September, were already on strike on Wednesday and Thursday of this week.
      At Levi the strike, which involved a hundred workers, caused all the ski-lifts, ticket sales desks, and equipment rental stores to remain shut.
      If an agreement is not reached quickly, another strike will commence next Friday, on the eve of Levi’s most important event of the year.
      “The organising of the event will be very difficult if our professionals are not at work at that time”, says Levi Ski Resort managing director Jouni Palosaari.
     
While visiting tourists, for example from Russia, resorted to climbing up certain smaller hills with skis on their shoulders in order to get to ski during their holiday, the Levi Black slope reserved for the competition event remained closed to everyone.
      “The slope requires 40 centimetres of ice. At the moment we have perhaps half of that”, explains competition director Tapio Kokko.
      The steep slope’s condition is examined by test drillings.
      “We’ve already used nearly 2.5 million litres of water to ensure that the slope is covered with snow, the weight of which is correct”, Kokko says.
      According to Palosaari, in the case that the second strike will also take place, dozens of holiday-makers have offered to help to make sure the World Cup slalom event could still happen.
      “It is not a question of breaking the strike. People just want to see to it that the World Cup competition can still be realised.”
     
Through the industrial action the ski resort field employees are seeking a three-per-cent salary increase. The employers have so far offered a 0.5 per cent raise.
      The first strike ended this (Friday) morning.
      The next action is scheduled for November 13th-16th. The strikes involve around a thousand workers, and the second stoppage would be appreciably expanded from the first one, which affected just five of the larger resorts.
     
Cancellation of the World Cup races would be a major financial blow for Levi and for businesses in the area, and would also be something of a discouragement for FIS to consider scheduling future events up here, even if the conditions do normally speak in favour of a competition in Lapland early in the winter, when snow conditions in the Alps can be tricky.
     
     
UPDATED 13:30
     
     
Levi has been successful in its moves to get the resort a free-pass during the strike by ski-resort staff scheduled for next week, enabling the FIS World Cup slalom races to go ahead as planned.
      The Service Union United PAM agree to leave Levi outside of industrial action that is to begin on Friday November 13th.
      PAM chairwoman Ann Selin said the decision was a difficult one, but was influenced by the fact that the World Cup will provide employment for many and its cancellation would have been a major blow to local entrepreneurs.
      The view among the union's members is also that by cutting Levi out of the dispute it is more likely a settlement can be reached.
      Further talks between the two sides are planned for Monday.
     


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Strike to close slopes at five ski resorts (4.11.2009)
  Strike threatens to hamper opening of Finland´s ski resorts (21.10.2009)

Links:
  Levi
  FIS-Ski

Helsingin Sanomat