Show Up in Court. Yep, you.

Background

Since March 22, you may have received an email, THREE text messages, a postcard, and a large envelope by mail from nine attorneys. These attorneys urged you to opt-in to the settlement that they negotiated in the class action lawsuit Hamilton v. Vail. They desperately wanted you to opt-in by clicking “Consent to Join” on their website OR by cashing the check that you will receive in the mail later. What happens when you opt-in? You get about $0.05 for every $1.00 Vail should have paid you. The attorneys get PAID $4,366,666.67. And Vail laughs all the way to its next annual meeting, noting that it disposed of a potential cost of over $100,000,000 for $13,100,000.

Why does it SUCK?

1. The compensation offered to us is grossly insufficient. They offered me less than $100. As a part-timer, I estimate that Vail shorted me over $2000 since 2016. Why does Vail get to keep the rest?

2. Vail refuses to admit that they didn’t “Do Right.” Yet, this season Vail changed many of the practices described in the complaint. That’s a tacit admission that Vail did not “Do Right” in the past. Remember all that training on Vail’s Core Values?

3. Vail makes no commitment to “Do Right” in the future. To “Do Right” would mean accurately recording ALL the time we work and paying for it.

4. The settlement amount is too small to make Vail “Do Right.” The plaintiffs claimed $108,000,000 in damages, then settled for 7.2% of that amount after fees and costs. WTF?

5. It is NOT fair for us to get 7.2% of what the attorneys claimed we were owed while they collect MILLIONS. They conveniently arranged for $4,366,666.67 in fees AND $50,000 more in cost reimbursement for their services.

6. Had they won in court, Vail might have had to pay us – and our attorneys. Part of the claim is that Vail violated the Federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). FLSA provides for double damages to help compensate those not paid wages due and for reimbursement of reasonable attorneys’ fees.

7. If you opt-in to this case, you cannot later join Quint v. Vail. The settlement notice omits the fact that you may have another option if you opt-out. You might be able to join a case (Quint v. Vail) that is pending in a Federal Court in Colorado where Vail Resorts is headquartered.

What does it all mean?

1. If you Opted Out, you kept your right to collect what you are owed. However, you cannot object at the Hearing. Show up to show your support!

2. If you did not opt out, show up in court. Ask Judge Michael McLaughlin to hear why you OBJECT to the settlement. If needed, remind him that your Settlement Notice said that you could be heard at this Final Approval Hearing.

3. Since "only" 1,517 members of the class opted out, Vail cannot pull the settlement. But Judge McLaughlin can DENY Final Approval. If he does, either these attorneys can start working for a living and negotiate a better settlement or they can drop their lawsuit. Maybe the Colorado attorneys can do a better job for the people who opted out, or for everybody, if this settlement gets denied.

4. Maybe Vail will get the message. That is, 1,517 people who can still sue (because we opted out) are looking for lawyers who will go to the mat for us. We want what Vail owes us. We want Vail to finish the wage reforms that started this season.

From the notice: "You may also appear at the final approval hearing scheduled for 1:30 on June 17, 2022 in Courtroom Department 4 of the Superior Court of the State of California, County of El Dorado, located at 1354 Johnson Blvd., South Lake Tahoe, CA 96150, in Department 4, to have your objection heard by the Court."