In order to be eligible for a J1 Visa you must:

Currently be a student between the ages of 19 and 30.

If you need information on how to obtain a J1 Visa, please visit www.ccusa.com and contact your local WEUSA Country Director or download an application and brochure. Work experience is an organization that assists Aspen Skiing Company and other companies in obtaining J1visas for interested applicants. These J1 Visas are good for 5 months(Nov-April), 4 months of work and 1 month of traveling, however, Aspen Skiing Company is interested in applicants that are available to work December 11-April 11. Employee housing is available but it is limited. If you are interested in employee housing, you should discuss this with the department manager that you are applying with after you have completed the applicant process with Work Experience USA. If you would like further information on obtaining housing, please visit our Housing page.

Again, to start the application process with Work Experience USA, visit www.ccusa.com and contact your local WEUSA Country Director today!

INTERESTED H2B VISA APPLICANT:

We're excited that you are interested in employment with Aspen Skiing Company (ASC). It is important that you read all of this information very carefully. Aspen Skiing Company owns and operates four ski areas - Snowmass, Buttermilk, Highlands and Aspen Mountain. This letter is intended to give the details of the H2B visa process. The H2B is a visa that allows non-US citizens to work for Aspen Skiing Company in a specified department from roughly November 15, 2008 through April 16, 2009.

The H2B visa is a seasonal visa that we are granted by proving to the U.S. government that we cannot fill our positions with U.S. citizens. Please read the detailed information regarding the H2B application process further on in the letter.  Below are listed the departments in which you may apply for a position as well as some basic information about each position. You need to commit to a full-time schedule except where noted. If you are interviewed for one of the below positions be sure to get more specific information from the manager regarding what each position entails. If you are offered and accept a position within a department, you cannot transfer to any other department. It is very important to be confident that you want to do the job you select for an entire winter season.

What to do?

Fill out the online H2B application form completely.  Once we receive your application we will forward it to the hiring managers for that position.  If you are a strong candidate, a hiring manager will contact you to conduct a phone interview.

If you receive a job offer we will proceed with securing your visa. Before you accept a job offer, it is important to carefully consider the position for which you are applying because you cannot change positions once we have assigned your name to a visa.

Additional information you must consider before you decide to accept a position with Aspen Skiing Company.

• Weather Risk: The winter resort industry is snow dependent. While Colorado usually enjoys excellent snow conditions, sometimes snow comes late. If we experience low or delayed snow, we may be unable to open all or part of the ski area as scheduled. In that event, work may not be available to you.
• Embassy and Consulate procedures and policies: The policies for issuance of visas for foreign work and travel vary widely from country to country and from embassy/consulate to embassy/consulate. These procedures may also change from day-to-day. You should check with your consulate or embassy on a regular basis.
• US Visa approval: US visa approval is conditional and does not guarantee that your local consulate or embassy will issue a visa.
• Housing in Aspen: Housing is scarce and may be expensive. You should inquire in advance to determine whether you can find housing acceptable to you.
• Timing of Visa approval and issuance: The timing for Visa approvals and issuance is beyond the control of ASC. We will make all reasonable efforts to help expedite the process, but we make no guarantees. You should carefully weigh the financial consequences to you that may result from visa delays and plan accordingly.
• Travel arrangements: In making travel arrangements, you should consider the possibility that visa issuance maybe delayed. We strongly recommend that you not make any reservations that are non-refundable.
• Working in a foreign country: While in the U.S., you must be prepared to be self-sufficient. If you have substantial personal, family, or financial commitments that cannot tolerate uncertainty, our seasonal work may not be appropriate for your circumstances.

What happens next?

In order to be granted these visas, we have to go through three different branches of our government, which means there can be delays in the process.  We will do everything that we can to expedite your visa.  If all goes well, you may be able to pick up your visa in early November.  You can only pick up your visa from a U.S. consulate in your country of origin or a country outside of the United States.  This is why we have asked you to choose a consulate on the H2B application form.  You cannot change your selected consulate once we submit the information to the government so be sure of your consulate choice.  The government can deny these visas at any point in the process but, we have been successful in the past and hope we will be in the future.  Please read the detailed information regarding the H2B application process.

•  Department of Labor (DOL) We submit an application for a Labor Certification stating to the DOL that there are not enough U.S. workers to fill the positions that are available.  Applications for Labor Certification cannot be made more than between 90 to 120 days prior to the start date on the H2B visa.  Thus we cannot apply for Labor Certification until July.  Once we have proven that we do not have enough applicants in the U.S. then we can apply with the USCIS.  This process can take anywhere from 3-6 months.
• USCIS (U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services) formerly the INS (Immigration and Naturalization Service) and briefly the BCIS  Once we have Labor Certification from the DOL we can proceed in sending the I-129 application forms to the BCIS and wait for the requests to be processed.  The BCIS process can take up to 120 days.  In the past it has taken 30 to 90 days.  This process is out of our hands which is why it is imperative for individuals to NOT make travel arrangements until the visas have been approved and stamped in their passport.
• Individual Consulates  When and if the BCIS has approved all of our I-129's they send an Approval Notice (I-797).  We will then contact the employee regarding the approval and at this point the employee will contact the consulate regarding the next steps in obtaining the visa.  Many times the employee will be charged a fee at the consulate.  Please be advised the consulate has full discretion and the ability to deny a visa.  If the occurs, we, the employer, have no recourse.

Aspen Skiing Company Information

Housing

Please keep in mind that employee housing is limited. We are not able to offer employee housing to all of our employees. If you are offered and accept a position ask your manager if housing is available for your department. For more information contact the housing department at housingoffice@aspensnowmass.com

Important Policies

It is the goal of Aspen Skiing Company to maintain a drug free workplace. All employment is conditional upon successfully passing a pre-employment drug test. If you are given a conditional offer of employment, you will be required to submit to a drug test as soon as you get to Aspen. It is also the policy of ASC that all employees adhere to the personal grooming policy and maintain a neat and clean appearance. All hair must be a natural tone. It must be neatly trimmed and clean and without extreme variations in length or color. Male hair, if worn longer then shoulder length, must be pulled back or worn in a ponytail or braid. No more than two earrings may be worn per ear. One small subtle nose stud is acceptable. No other visible body piercing jewelry may be worn. No visible tattoos.

Benefits

We offer an excellent benefit package including a four mountain ski pass, health insurance benefits after a couple of weeks of work, discounted bus passes to get you to and from work, discounts at the mountain restaurants while working, discounts at our employee store and much more!

Again, thank you for your excitement in employment with Aspen Skiing Company. We hope to see you in Aspen next winter.

Sincerely,

Human Resources
hr@aspensnowmass.com

Aspen Skiing Company is an Equal Opportunity Employer