Instructors at Vail Resorts are opting into a class-action lawsuit against the corporation, alleging violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act. Since it was filed, nearly 2,000 snow sports instructors have opted in, and if the judge extends the deadline at a hearing scheduled for Wednesday, April 22, many more could join.
The lawsuit, titled Quint et al. v. Vail Resorts, Inc., accuses the ski company of having failed to fairly compensate its instructors for “off-the-clock” job duties — including time traveling between employee parking lots, locker rooms, and worksites; time spent putting on gear and uniforms; and time in training sessions.
Further, the lawsuit claims that instructors were not compensated for necessary job-related expenses, such as ski and snowboard gear. It was filed by plaintiffs Randy Dean Quint, John Linn, and Mark Molina with the U.S. Court of Appeals, Tenth Circuit.
According to the case website, “Vail Resorts denies that it did anything wrong or violated any laws in this case and denies all the Named Plaintiffs’ allegations. Vail Resorts believes it has paid and continues to pay all Snow Sports Instructors in full compliance with the law.”
This is the second class action lawsuit filed against Vail in less than a month. In March, DiCello Levitt filed a class action suit against both Vail Resorts and Alterra Mountain Company. That suit alleged the two companies had engaged in antitrust business conduct to unlawfully inflate day pass prices.
GearJunkie reached out to both parties involved in this class action lawsuit. However, we did not receive a response from either by the time of publication.
Discovery Hearing & Possible Deadline Extension
Instructors who worked at Vail between December 2, 2017, and 2026 were eligible to join the lawsuit. Some 24,000 potential signees were contacted via snail mail and email with information on the case and how to join it. The opt-in deadline was set for April 15, 2026. According to the Vail Daily, the plaintiffs in this case were concerned that only 2,000 of those individuals contacted opted in.
On Monday, the judge for this case, Magistrate Judge N. Reid Neureiter, ordered a discovery hearing for Wednesday April, 22. At that hearing, Judge Neureiter could choose to extend the deadline for class members who want to opt in but have yet to do so. Should the judge extend the deadline, the plaintiffs hope to see more people sign on.
