Aspen, CO – The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) last month upheld Aspen Skiing Co.’s January decision to a ski instructor who outspokenly voiced criticism of the resort’s pay structure.
Instructor Lee Mulcahy Mulcahy filed a complaint against the Aspen Skiing Co. in October 2010 after publishing a letter to the editor in a local newspaper critical of the resort company’s pay structure for first-year ski instructors. He was dismissed by the ski resort shortly after handing out fliers during the late December holiday period at the Little Nell Hotel in Aspen, owned by Aspen Skiing Co., calling out the resort’s managers and owners for what he deemed low pay. Beginning ski instructors in Aspen earn $69 per day and the ski resort charges patrons $625 per full day for a private lesson, no matter how experienced the instructor. Mulcahy himself was an instructor of 13 years.
The NLRB office in Denver in March sided with the resort company. Mulcahy filed two appeals, and the NLRB in Washington last month upheld the Denver office’s decision, indicating that there was insufficient evidence to tie Mulcahy’s dismissal to what they termed “protected concerted activity” under the National Labor Relations Act.
Two other matters between the parties, however, remained unresolved following the decision and were successfully negotiated last week. Mulcahy asserted that he was removed from the resort’s “Diamond Club” ski instructor team in August 2010 in retaliation after he circulated an email to fellow instructors critical of the pay structure for new employees and suggesting possible unionization. Mulcahy also asserts that Aspen Ski Co. unlawfully set up a de-facto labor organization through its structure and grievance procedure, a point upon which the NLRB was partially in agreement.
As a result of the agreement, the resort company must notify all employees returning this season that they have a right to form or join a union. Certain phrases and restrictions regarding employee communication and criticism will be struck from the resort’s employee handbook. Management representatives will no longer be able to participate in advisory boards that address issues within the resort’s staff of instructors.
In addition to his dismissal, Mulcahy is banned from skiing at any of the four Aspen-area ski resorts, even as a paying customer.
“In our view this issue is now addressed and we will be moving forward,” Aspen Skiing Co. officials indicated in a prepared statement. “We feel that the NLRB ruling vindicates our decisions all along with regards to this matter.”
this story is still ongoing since the Skico banned the whistleblower from all 4 ski areas under threat of arrest [National Forest]. backstory:
here’s a little history from Aspen Skollie from Feb 5th, 2010:
This is the story about a small town folk singer and his “anthem for local working people.” It’s about corporate bullying, irony and karma. It’s the story of “Big Money.”
Dan Sheridan, a 20-plus year Aspen local, released an album in 2003 that included a song called “Big Money.” While the song has been popular among some locals, Sheridan has never gained much notoriety past the Aspen corridor of Highway 82. That is until recently. On January 1, 2010, Sheridan played a gig at Sneaky’s Tavern in the new and incomplete Snowmass Base Village. [Yesterday’s front page story was: Skico accused of fraudulent actions in Base Village condo sales. It was written by local author Brent Gardner-Smith.] A group in the small crowd requested “Big Money” and Sheridan obliged them by playing the song. Sheridan said he had noticed “dudes in full-length fur coats and cowboy boots” but that he “got the feeling that everyone wanted to hear it.”
While no one ever heard from the man-fur sporting tourists, there was apparently one person in the crowd who did not want to hear it. An Aspen Skiing Company Vice President complained to the Director of Food and Beverage, and on the following Monday Sheridan was fried. By that Wednesday the Aspen Times published a story detailing the events, and Jeff Hanle, the Skico’s spokesman, was quoted as saying, “An artist can express himself how he wants. But that doesn’t mean we have to provide him the stage.” Suddenly everybody was talking about “Big Money.”
The newspaper was flooded with letters to the Editor with such headlines as “Censorship by Skico,” “Downright Pathetic,” and “Boycott Skico,” and by Thursday the Aspen Skiing Company was calling Sheridan to say that he could come back and play any song except for “Big Money.” Aspen Daily News printed the story “Skico welcomes Sheridan back without “Big Money””. Hanle called the incident a “PR debacle” and said that he hoped Skico could put the incident behind them and move on.
Unfortunately for Skico, that was just the beginning. More letters poured into both Aspen newspapers,… and even Pitkin County Commissioner Jack Hatfield dissed the Skico for all to see on Grassroots TV. The original story became the most read article on the Aspen Times website, and it was picked up by Denver’s Westword.
Skico moved on and decided to ride the holiday wave by promoting Aspen Snowmass in major cities like Chicago, San Francisco, and L.A. The company took its first billboard ads since 1958 with the headline “It’s Time to Fly” featuring hometown sweetheart Gretchen Bleiler. However, the story would not die.
While the Skico was posting billboards along the 405 in L.A., the L.A. Times was printing an article titled “Folk song strikes a touchy chord in Aspen”, which can now be found on their website under Home/Collections/Wealthy People. Instead of giving Sheridan a quiet warning and letting a couple of urban cowboys take offense at a small show, Skico officials alienated Aspen locals and undermined their own major advertising campaign. Corporate karma can be a real bi#ch.
The story finally reached Gawker: “Take heart, hippie communist folk singer Dan Sheridan… you are quite correct. Big money ruins everything. And that’s gonna suck for the rich, if they ever leave their cocaine-and-expensive-hooker-strewn Jacuzzis.”
The good news is that Dan Sheridan is now a folk hero, and everyone wants to hear “Big Money.” Still, is an apology authentic if it only comes after you have been called out? Would Sheridan still have a job if the Aspen Times had never printed that story? No one at Skico has yet to take responsibility for the firing of Dan Sheridan. There is no transparency and no accountability, and perhaps that is why this story continues to play.
You have to wonder what is going on at Aspen Skiing Company. In a new story Curtis Wackerle for the Aspen Daily News ask why Skico has stopped delivery of the newspaper to its hotel properties. Hanle is quoted as saying that the amount of newsprint on display at the properties “was just overwhelming” and that it had nothing to do with the Daily News running the story “Skico’s green efforts didn’t include Residences at The Little Nell.”
“An artist can express himself how he wants. But that doesn’t mean we have to provide him the stage” sounds a lot like “A newspaper can say what it wants, but that doesn’t mean we have to provide it the circulation” or advertise with it. It’s not so much a bullet to the Daily News as it is a sucker punch. Skico fail.
-Skollie Life
From Saturday’s Aspen Daily News: Aspen Skiing faces another NLRB complaint…yet again: http://www.aspendailynews.com/section/home/155327
A comment on the article from occupy aspen’s facebook page: “Freud is not far off: It all goes back to the playground & Aspen is ….1 big junior high. Boys will be boys and swagger is Jungian in nature, but it needs to be backed up by reality. Warning: Lewd Texas language to follow. The girls in Ski School always used to gossip about how well James Cohen [the Aspen Ski Instructor who filed complaints against Skico including threats and coercion] was blessed by God in the manhood dept. In other words, James Cohen is hung like a horse. The CEO of Skico, not so much. Whereas I worked out The Snowmass Club Aspen for 10 years where I would occasionally see the CEO of Skico, who bless his heart, is a bully with a small tootsie roll. Good luck to Mr Cohen, an amazing skier. -lee mulcahy phd
This story could be entitled “How billionaires lie to and evade law enforcement in both Colorado and Illinois” (and will probably get away with it) or “Bullies never learn.”
Lester Crown, the force behind General Dynamics, a merchant of death for our endless wars, got caught bribing politicians, lied about it, and got caught again. It got so bad that a Congressman from Texas [not me] called him a “lying crook” on the floor of Congress.* Three former Secretaries of State had to testify for Lester for him to even retain his security clearance to remain on the Board of General Dynamics.
Justice in America?
Crown family brought into feud between Aspen Skiing Co., Lee Mulcahy
A former Aspen Skiing Co. instructor who is engaged in a running feud with his ex-employer made progress last week getting Skico Managing Partner Jim Crown and his wife, Paula, added to a civil lawsuit.
Lee Mulcahy sued the Crowns and Aspen Skiing Co. on April 16, 2012, but he was never able to serve the Crowns with the lawsuit. Mulcahy, who is representing himself in the legal matter, filed a motion on July 29, asking a judge to allow him to serve the Crowns in alternative ways rather than having someone hand them the lawsuit directly.
Pitkin County District Judge Daniel Petre last week approved Mulcahy’s motion for substituted service of process upon the Crowns.
“Submissions by Mr. Mulcahy, including an affidavit, demonstrate that he has made substantial efforts to personally serve process and subpoenas upon the Crowns in this matter,” Petre wrote in his Dec. 2 order. “Service has been attempted at personal and business addresses in both Aspen, Colorado, and Chicago, Illinois, but those efforts have been futile.”
Petre said Mulcahy had achieved due diligence in trying to serve the notice of litigation. He also found it was legitimate to serve Jim and Paula Crown as representatives of the family that owns Skico. “On the record before it, it appears that one or both of them own all, or a substantial interest in, ASC,” the order said. “As a result, the Chief Executive Officer of ASC, Mike Kaplan, is an appropriate person to receive personal service on behalf of the Crowns.”
The judge gave Mulcahy until Dec. 5 to try to serve the Crowns by sending them his legal complaint by regular mail to their last-known residential address, to their last-known business address, to any current residential address provided by the Skico attorney and by personal service on Kaplan.
Mulcahy didn’t return a telephone message from The Aspen Times on Tuesday for comment on whether he achieved those methods of service.
Earlier in the process, Mulcahy served Kaplan with the lawsuit by having his father, Bud Mulcahy, hand the document to Kaplan at the end of a Pitkin County commissioners meeting. Kaplan attended the Skico’s annual fall briefing of the county commissioners on issues of interest. Bud Mulcahy sat through the presentation, then approached Kaplan after it was finished and handed him the lawsuit. Kaplan was served as CEO of Skico.
Petre gave the Crowns 35 days from the filing of a certificate of service to respond to Mulcahy’s lawsuit.
Skico attorney Edward Ramey argued against the substituted service. His motion said Mulcahy didn’t demonstrate that he made a bona fide effort to serve the Crowns.
Ramey also argued that Skico was the only entity that should be involved in the case because any potential remedial action would have to be taken by the company, not the Crowns.
“James and Paula Crown have simply been alleged to be ‘owners’ — in fact incorrect — or (with regard to James Crown) a managing director of Ski Co,” Skico’s attorney wrote. “This is little different from naming and attempting to serve the individual officers, members of the Board of Directors, or shareholders of Microsoft to address an action taken by Microsoft.”
Ramey said Tuesday that the Crowns wouldn’t necessarily be parties to the lawsuit even if they are served. Their attorney could file a motion to dismiss the lawsuit against them on grounds that there are no claims against them.
Mulcahy filed the lawsuit to seek declaratory and injunctive relief from Skico and the Crowns over Skico’s alleged violation of his right to free speech. Mulcahy was a top-rated ski instructor who got into a fight with Skico brass. He claimed Skico retaliated against him after he explored creating a union for ski instructors and complained about the wages of entry-level workers. Skico said Mulcahy’s performance was the issue.
He was suspended on Dec. 30, 2010, and banned from Skico property after he handed out leaflets promoting unionization for Skico employees. Skico told him the firm would pursue criminal trespass charges if he entered its property, including the land it leases in national forest area.
Mulcahy responded that the ban for handing out leaflets violated his right to free speech and violated the National Labor Relations Act. Skico denies it violated his rights.
Mulcahy was fired Jan. 27, 2011.
He is asking a judge to rule that Skico cannot ban him from its property and award him one dollar in punitive damages plus legal fees and costs.
While serving as his own attorney, some of Mulcahy’s motions are sprinkled with colorful wording rarely seen in legal documents.
“Few, if any, private entities in modern times have established a fiefdom such as is overseen by Skico,” Mulcahy wrote in one motion.
He later added, “Nor has any modern private entity evidenced the hubris of Skico in trying to make an example of Plaintiff, a bible-studying Eagle Scout who actively manages charitable missions to dig water wells in Africa, by publicly threatening criminal prosecution should he inadvertently cross unmarked lines running throughout Aspen and thousands of acres of surrounding forest land, the location of which are known only to Skico, as retaliation for Plaintiff’s turning to State and Federal agencies to force Defendant to comply with federal and state labor laws, and/or promoting unionization of Skico employees.”
Ramey said no trial date has been set yet. “Everything is on hold until we determine if the Crowns are in or out of the case,” he said.
scondon@aspentimes.com
*Google Lester Crown lying crook, Chicago Tribune