‘Our work-life balance takes place within a three-kilometer radius,’ says Big White's Michael Ballingall, highlighting challenges of climate change, hiring and housing
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is now openly debating how to keep the Winter Games viable as snow becomes less reliable worldwide; IOC Future Host Commission chair Karl Stoss recently said that March is becoming too warm for the Paralympic Games, in a recent Euronews report.
Out of 93 mountain locations worldwide that have the infrastructure to host elite winter sports, only 52 will still be “climate reliable” by the 2050s — potentially dropping to 30 by the 2080s, according to University of Waterloo research.
That shrinking pool of winter-reliable locations is not just a problem for the IOC — it is also a warning sign for Canadian employers that rely on weather-driven business models to hire seasonal staff.
Changing seasonal hiring patterns
The Waterloo research points out that winter temperature is “significantly associated with” GDP in Canada.
“Across all specifications, the estimated effects of winter temperature anomalies are negative,” it adds.
At B.C. interior’s Big White Ski Resort, “the snow is coming later and staying longer,” says vice-president Michael Ballingall, prompting the resort to reconsider how it hires, houses and supports more than 1,000 workers each season.
Ballingall says the resort is watching season variability closely when it considers future capital decisions. He points to Big White’s current conditions as an example: due to unseasonal sun-and-freeze patterns, the hill is experiencing icy conditions rather than its usual daily fresh powder.
“Is that going to become a reality? Because we would invest in more snowmaking then because we would need to top up,” he says – meaning different training, safety and hiring strategies.
Like many seasonal employers, Big White relies in large part on international workers and faces constraints under current federal programs such as reduced immigration levels. Also, visa requirements have changed in recent years, meaning that a substantial portion of their employee base (Australians) can’t stay as long as they formerly could.
The LMIA (Labour Market Impact Assessment) and the road to permanent residency “used to be a lot easier,” Ballingall says, adding that this has made hiring and retaining highly skilled workers especially challenging.
“Last year, I lost my best level-four ski instructor. She's now in Japan because her boyfriend was from Australia, and he couldn't get an extension on his visa [in Canada].”
Finding skilled seasonal talent
Ballingall points to grooming equipment operators as another example of tough-to-fill positions. They demand technical skill, safety awareness and the ability to work long, isolated shifts – but due to visa regulations, operators who travel between Australia and New Zealand and Canada cannot stay.
In response, Big White has developed a creative recruitment solution, looking outside the usual talent pools for transferable skills.
“They go to America, they go to Japan, they go to Europe, they go somewhere else — we go into the prairies,” he says.
“We look for kids that were driving combines for their family, driving farm machinery, because they're used to being in a cab for six, seven, eight hours at a time, and they know how important it is to treat the machinery with care.”
Certification requirements can also shape how seasonal teams are built. In rental operations, for example, where anyone required to “touch a binding” must be certified, Ballingall says. This means that with around 80 rental staff, the resort relies heavily on returnees and a structured progression path.
He compares the two-year hiring cycle to “making a smoothie,” with management intentionally cherry-picking new staff with leadership potential to return the following year to make up the vacancies.
Beyond housing: orientation, amenities
For remote or resort employers, staffing is inseparable from housing, Ballingall says, and Big White has met that reality with investment: “We've spent over $25 million in the last five years on staff accommodation. So, what used to be a problem is no longer a problem.”
Jobs can’t be filled if workers have nowhere affordable to live, he says, and it goes beyond just basic accommodation to quality of living, amenities and logistics – Big White prioritizes all three of these, stressing that seasonal employees expect to enjoy their time at a location.
For employers bringing in seasonal staff from other provinces or countries, investing time upfront on these foundational issues can reduce stress and improve retention, Ballingall says.
“Your first day orientation is all about ‘Do you have the right footwear? Here's where you're sleeping. Do you have the right bedding? Have you ordered your groceries? Do you have a bank account, do you have a SIN number?’” he details.
“And the first question we get asked is ‘Where do I get cheap high-speed internet?’ That's the first question, because you're up on a mountain.”
With many staff away from home for the first time, Big White builds safety and peer support into its culture, including offering experiences for travel and entertainment off the mountain.
“Our work-life balance takes place within a three-kilometer radius,” he says. “The thing that's really important is you’ve got to treat them good. You’ve got to give them things to do.”
Accessible leadership, recruitment pipelines
Ballingall, who has worked in the tourism and hospitality industry in B.C. since the early 80s, sees ski resort work as a springboard into wider hospitality careers, meaning for him, seasonal roles are part of a wider talent pipeline, not just one-off jobs.
To foster that pipeline, Big White helps connect staff to next steps – as long as employees aren’t poached before the end of their season. Coordinated handoffs to other employers can help seasonal staff see their work as part of a stable, year-round career path, even if it involves moving between organizations.
That pipeline, plus contract-completion bonuses, can help add to the equation, making a location an attractive option in a competitive and increasingly unpredictable hiring season.
However, above everything, Ballingall says the key to Big White’s successful talent strategy is “not having a corporate ideology,” meaning a strong and accessible leadership presence.
“When your leader walks the floor, it trickles down,” he says.
“So, your vice presidents are walking the floor, your vice presidents are in the resort all the time, literally, seven days a week, they're on a rotating basis. It gets the managers out from behind their desks.”
