Job Security, Economic Uncertainty and Climate Change and their Influence on Ski Industry Workers in Japan
Job Security, Economic Uncertainty and Climate Change and their Influence on Ski Industry Workers in Japan
The Alpine Ski industry is largely populated by a seasonal workforce that provides a range of skills from customer service to logistics and resort management. Increased economic uncertainty following the global financial crisis has resulted in a downturn in skiing participation and this has increased pressures on the availability of seasonal work within the Alpine industry. Furthermore, climate change is having a detrimental impact on the amount and quality of snow cover effectively reducing the length of the ski season addition further pressure on seasonal employment. The purpose of this research is to provide insights into how seasonal workers in ski resorts around Niseko in Hokkaido Japan assess economic uncertainty and how this affects their decision to return to a particular resort each season and whether they seek greater certainty in their employment contract.JEL Codes: J21, J61, J81, Q26, Q54