Ski resort job fairs offer glimmer of hope in tight economy

The economies of California and Nevada have been especially battered by the recent woes of the global marketplace.

The latest government data show 12.2 percent of Californians are without a job and 13.3 percent of Nevadans are also unemployed. The national jobless rate hovers around 10 percent.

And those numbers aren't likely to change soon.

Unemployment is expected to remain at or above 9.6 percent through 2010, said Christina Romer, the chair of President Barack Obama's Council of Economic Advisers, on Thursday.

Fierce job competition

But with the change in seasons comes a glimmer of hope for local job hunters. Hundreds of jobs will be available this weekend during annual job fairs held by each of the three ski resorts near Lake Tahoe's South Shore.

And the state of the economy is expected to make the competition for the jobs fiercer than in the past.

“We've seen more interest and we've also seen a higher caliber candidate,” said Kirstin Cattell, a spokeswoman for Sierra-at-Tahoe.

Even without much snow on the ground, the resort has seen more applications from people with college degrees and those who have 20 or 30 years experience in the work force than last year, Cattell said.

“We've seen a lot of people who have been laid off from previous jobs,” Cattell added.

Resorts have also seen more interest from regional and national job seekers this year, said Heavenly Mountain Resort spokesman Russ Pecoraro.

“Applications have been coming in sooner and positions have been filled sooner,” Pecoraro said. “With that said, we're still expecting thousands of people at the job fairs.”

The sheer number of expected applicants means prospective employees will have to put their best foot forward, Cattell said.

“Just be aware that there is a lot more competition than in year's past,” Cattell said. “Show up ready to interview for a job.”

Heavenly Mountain resorts has about 300 year-around employees and will employ about 1,500 people at the peak of the winter, Pecoraro said. Pecoraro said he isn't sure how many would be hired during the resort's two upcoming job fairs.

Sierra-at-Tahoe has about 50 year around employees and employs between 600 to 700 people at the peak of the season, Cattell said. The resort expects to hire about 300 people at this weekend's job fair.

Kirkwood Mountain Resort officials did not provide information about winter hiring prior to deadline.

— The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Upcoming ski resort job fairs

Heavenly Mountain Resort

Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Tuesday from 4:30-7:30 p.m. at the resort's California Main Lodge located at 3860 Saddle Road. Apply online at http://skijob1.snow.com/info/or.h.asp before arriving. For more information, call (530) 542-5183 or visit www.skijob1.com.

Sierra-at-Tahoe

Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Sierra-at-Tahoe, 1111 Sierra-at-Tahoe Road in Twin Bridges. Prospective employees are asked to fill out an application online at http://www.sierraattahoe.com/ prior to arrival.Bartenders will not be interviewed at the job fair, but are asked to submit a resume to hrstaffing.st@boothcreek.com.

Kirkwood Mountain Resort

Saturday from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. at Lake Tahoe Golf Course located at 2500 Emerald Bay Road.

For more information call (209) 258-7385 or e-mail humanresources@kirkwood.com.