The Trump administration has tightened requirements around J-1 visas, which foreign students use to live and work temporarily in the United States.
Park City’s winter workforce includes thousands of J-1 visa holders. And despite the shift in federal immigration policy, ski areas say they don’t expect to be shorthanded this season.
“Recent changes in requirements and reduced appointment availability in some South American countries have presented challenges for certain applicants,” Deer Valley Resort spokesperson Emily Summers told KPCW.
But she said Deer Valley is drawing J-1 staff from other countries and actually “slightly increased” the number of students they’re hiring. This season, the resort plans to double the amount of its skiable terrain by opening a major expansion in Wasatch County.
At Park City Mountain to the west, a spokesperson said Vail Resorts has been focusing on retaining domestic seasonal workers.
“Employees with a visa make up a very small percentage of [Park City Mountain's] employee base — just about 5% total, so we aren’t anticipating any notable impact to our staffing,” the Vail Resorts spokesperson said.
The U.S. Department of State doesn’t generally let J-1s enter the country more than 30 days before their first day of work, so it may be months before experts know how many actually end up in Park City.
Summit County Housing and Economic Development Director Jeff Jones said businesses in Summit County see an additional 2,600 to 3,900 employees during a typical winter.
“We’ve had a couple of years where we've actually broached over 4,000 employees added in the winter,” he told the Oakley City Council in August. “This year, you know, I'm nervous because I don't know where the J-1 visa holders are.”
He said foreign students usually make up between 1,700 and 2,000 of those seasonal employees.
According to Park City Chamber of Commerce President & CEO Jennifer Wesselhoff, their impact may be even larger than those numbers suggest.
“So while the larger corporations and the larger businesses bring in those J-1s, oftentimes, then they're going for a second job at some of our smaller mom-and-pops,” Wesselhoff explained on KPCW’s “Local News Hour” Aug. 25.
She said major employers started the visa hiring process earlier this year.
The not-for-profit trade organization National Ski Areas Association told the Vail Daily this month some of its members are concerned about “longer vetting timelines, new social media screening requirements and significant staffing reductions at U.S. consulates.”
However, the Department of State says consulates remain active even during the ongoing government shutdown that began Oct. 1.
“We’ve also engaged Utah’s congressional delegation to advocate for expanded appointment access and continued support for this valuable program,” Summers said.
The Trump administration recently claimed non-immigrant visa programs are prone to abuse and proposed a rule that would cap foreign students’ time in the country at 4 years.
The New York Times reports total foreign student arrivals dropped across the board in August, including an 11% year-over-year reduction from South American students.
Deer Valley Resort and Vail Resorts’ EpicPromise Foundation are financial supporters of KPCW.
