The Outdoor Industry Needs Workers, And Workers Need Unions

Work in the outdoor industry long enough, and you’ll learn that only certain jobs in the U.S. are allowed to be taken seriously. Spending your days emailing about nothing is a “career.” Drafting slogans to feed the AI machine? Impressive. Combining the abilities of an EMT, chef, navigator, and athletic coach? Well, you’re just playing outside. 

Outdoor recreation work is often seen as summer camp for adults, an in-between seasonal way for young people to play around and earn some cash while they figure out what they “really want to do.” But when a bear shows up at your campsite, an avalanche swoops down, or you step over a root wrong and snap your ankle 30 miles into the backcountry, a guide might be the only thing standing between you and your fast-approaching mortality.

So what’s a hard-working guide to do? How does the outdoor recreation industry earn its well-deserved respect? For some, the answer is unions.