Despite Amtrak’s many benefits, it does suffer from some issues in the satisfied customer department. Amtrak has an F rating with the Better Business Bureau largely due to complaints about delays and, overcrowding, and customer service. It also has a low rating with consumer affairs for much the same reason. That being said, there are plenty of people who ride the Amtrak rails on a regular basis and have no qualms with the company.
BNSF Railway
The second largest freight company in the United States, BNSF is a Class 1 railroad. This means that their annual revenue is consistently at least $250 million. This company is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, but BNSF lines run across twenty-eight states on the middle and western portions of the country and carry more than eight thousand trains. In other words, you don’t need to be Texan to find work with them.
Another large operation, BNSF also takes care of its employees, offering competitive pay and benefits. They also promise significant opportunities for advancement. Although these are likely in line with the typical modes of advancement that railroad workers enjoy.
BNSF has an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau due to a lack of response (no complaints and no reviews). However, before you start assuming that it is better than Amtrak for that reason, note that customers are far more likely to log complaints than employees and Amtrak suffers from an overabundance of customers. Still, it’s worth noting that the official BBB safety record for BNSF is in tact.
CSX Transportation
Like the BNSF Railway, CSX Transportation is a Class 1 freight railroad company. It serves primarily the eastern third of the United States and reaching up into Ontario, Canada. CSX Transportation is a subsidiary of CSX Corporation, an American company whose primary business is owning shares in the real estate and railroad industries.
There are benefits and downsides to working for a subsidized company. Sometimes, knowing that there’s a larger company out there interested in the success of your company can help foster a sense of security. Of course, this is less necessary with a company that’s already as big as CSX transportation. Sometimes people dislike working for subsidiaries. They worry that the parent company has too many interests unrelated to their own.
In either case, CSX Transportation offers competitive benefits and pay and enjoys a mostly A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau.
Kansas City Southern Railway
This railroad company has the unique distinction among the top US railroad companies to service Mexico. Based out of Kansas City, Missouri, it is the smallest of the Class I railroads and serves the smallest number of states of the companies listed here.
Despite its size, Kansas City Southern offers extremely competitive benefits, including health insurance, vision insurance, dental insurance, opportunities to buy stock at a value, and a 401k retirement plan. They have no visible rating with the Better Business Bureau, which could be considered as good as an A+ what with the lack of complaints.
Norfolk Southern Railway
Norfolk Southern operates exclusively on the east coast, competing directly with CSX Transportation and the Canadian Pacific Railway. Another Class I railroad, it operates out of Norfolk, Virginia and runs through twenty-two states. The company claims to be the largest intermodal freight train on the eastern half of the continent. This means they carry cargo in large containers that can easily be moved from train to ship to airplane without having to handle the contents. Norfolk Southern offers competitive rates and salary. It has a mostly A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau and mixed reviews from employees on Glassdoor.
Union Pacific Railroad
This company has the distinction of being both the largest and one of the oldest train companies in America. It hauls freight from the middle of the country clear to the west coast. The Union Pacific Railroad started with the Union Pacific route, the western half of the Transcontinental Railroad. From there it grew into a massive corporation that hauls freight across twenty-three states using eighty-five hundred trains.
Union Pacific takes pride in its history and the role its original route played in shaping the country. Visit their website and you’ll see that they treat their employees like a community of people working together to build a better future. Whether you buy into this or not, it’s clear that they have a passion for motivating workers and a strong image to uphold. Therefore, they’re likely to have tough standards and take care of their workers. As with the other freight companies on this list, they have an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau.
Why So Few Passenger Companies?
It’s true. Amtrak seems to have the unique distinction of being both a passenger train company and a major train company in the United States. However, that doesn’t mean it’s the only one out there. Plenty of smaller passenger trains still operate within cities and states. Several work somewhat longer routes, crossing state lines. Most of these are public organizations, funded and run by local government. For example, the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority runs a commuter rail that travels between various points in northern, eastern, and western Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
Passenger trains will never the be money makers that freight trains are. Amtrak is unique among them, with 2.185 billion dollars in annual revenue in 2015. To put that in perspective, consider that freight companies like Norfolk Southern make tens of billions of dollars each year. In short, passenger train companies are rarely going to make as much as freight companies.
What’s more, smaller passenger train companies will never be able to compete with Amtrak. Amtrak is a government mandated monopoly. It is a public company created by Congress in 1970 to be the sole passenger train operator on cross-country tracks. Prior to this, private companies shared the railroad and operated at enormous losses. Congress’s act was intended to save the passenger train industry, recognizing that demand was not high enough for free market competition to work.
Of course, not everyone is happy about this change. In 2015, Kevin McCarthy, the House Majority Leader, released a statement to the House of Representatives appealing to them to end Amtrak’s monopoly and the governments interference in the free market. He claimed that the government was not helping to save the railroads so much as preventing them from being able to save themselves.
Until such changes occur, Amtrak will be your best bet for passenger train jobs. And if you dream of traveling long distances as a passenger train conductor, it will be your only bet. Otherwise, look to your city’s or state’s local transit authority. You might also look to see if there are any private trains in your area. Many of these operate as attractions, like the scenic trains that wind through portions of the Rocky Mountains. They may also come with better, more reliable hours.
Now What?
Have a first choice? Make sure you have a second, third, and so on. In fact, don’t hesitate to apply to just about any job that fits the bill. Do this by going to the railroad company’s website. Somewhere on the landing page you should see a link that says something like “jobs” or “work here.” These companies do most of their hiring from their websites and will make it very easy to navigate and apply to openings.
Your job doesn’t stop with applying either. Check back frequently for more job postings and announcements. If you are serious about becoming a conductor, you’ll check the postings every day. Some companies may even reach out to applicants through the system, so checking will not only keep you on top of new openings, but also prevent you from missing an important communication about a job you’ve applied to.
Chapter Eighteen: Conductors, Engineers, and Your Future
Conductors and engineers are the two most prestigious and essential positions on any given train. Conductors manage the train’s overall operations, while engineers actually operate the train. These positions are so essential that many freight trains function with only a conductor and an engineer on board. They are the only positions required to be on any operating train.
Although conductors are in char
ge of the trains and, therefore, hold a higher authority than engineers, the later is considered the “end game” job in the train industry. Just as brakemen and signalmen might eventually go on to become conductors, conductors often go on to become engineers. If you are interested in becoming a train conductor, then this role is likely in your future. So let’s take a moment to learn more about engineers and why so many conductors end up driving trains.
The Engineer in Depth
An engineer’s responsibilities are basically the same whether he or she is driving a passenger or freight train. The only notable differences involve likely hours and the obvious fact that passengers prefer lighter handling (if a freight train engineer hits the brakes a little too enthusiastically, the cargo isn’t likely to complain). For the most part, however, driving a train is driving a train and that is all engineers really concern themselves with.
Of course, driving a train is not nearly as simple as it might sound. If one were to romanticize the role of the conductor, one might imagine a laid back individual pressing start on a train engine and leaning back to enjoy the countryside as it trundles by. The reality, however, is quite different. Engineers must be vigilant at all times and none of what they do is as simple as it first sounds.
For example, engineers are responsible for managing the speed of the train. But this doesn’t mean braking and accelerating the way you might in a car. Trains travel at such great speeds that engineers must plan breaking far in advance. This means being intimately familiar with their route; they must be aware of signals, safety procedures, and even just the condition of the track. Additionally, they must work closely with the conductor and dispatchers to make sure that they are prepared for unscheduled stops.
In addition to monitoring speed and ensuring that the train brakes on time, engineers must stay on top of air pressure, battery use, and anything else that might interfere with the train’s safe movement. They communicate primarily with the conductor and relay important information regarding train operation.
Sometimes the engineer’s responsibilities overlap with those of the conductor. For instance, engineers may find themselves shunting and coupling train cars in the yard. They may also communicate directly with dispatch or address mechanical issues on the train. This is one reason why having had training and experience as a conductor first is so important.
Like a conductor, train engineers often have very irregular hours and long shifts (especially if they work on freight trains). Conductors who reached a certain level of seniority and enjoyed better, more reliable shifts as a result, shouldn’t expect that when they transition to engineer. Once they become an engineer, they are a “rookie” again and will have to work harder shifts in the beginning. That being said, engineers are never expected to work more than twelve hours in a single shift. In fact, doing so would violate important national safety standards.
Driving a train is a hard life. Engineers are on call day and night. They are sometimes given as little as two hours’ notice before they have to report for a shift. Nothing is safe, not weekends, not holidays, and not children’s birthdays. However, if you’ve worked successfully as a conductor, you already know a little about this kind of spontaneous living and may be well prepared for the role.
How Conductors Become Engineers
Not only is it possible to transition from being a conductor to being an engineer, it is largely expected. For many reasons that we’ve already stated, conductors are well suited to being engineers. They are already familiar with the hard life of shift work combined with long hours. They understand the safety procedures and mechanical workings of the train. If they are freight conductors, they are likely also familiar with the relative isolation that train riding can bring.
Train companies understand this and, for that reason, they’ve made it very simple to transition into an engineering position (if not easy). Conductors who want to be engineers can submit paperwork requesting admittance to an engineering training program. This is also known as “bidding.” Unfortunately for those who are new to conducting and want to make the switch, these bids tend to go by seniority. Train companies will consider skill and service, but ultimately everyone needs to wait their turn.
If you bid on an engineering program, make sure you’re serious about the job. Your conductor position will not be waiting for you if you fail the program or change your mind and leave. These programs tend to last about five to six months and train companies can’t afford to hold conductor jobs open for that long.
Conductors who are lucky enough to get into one of these programs can look forward to training as or more demanding as their conductor training. Engineer training is chock full of tests on mechanics, rules, and safety procedures. When they aren’t studying and testing, prospective engineers will be practicing in simulators, upon which they will eventually also be tested. Standards for passing these tests are high. Sixty or seventy percent might have been good enough in high school, but here you’ll likely need at least ninety percent to pass. It’s a dangerous job and the train companies don’t want to take any risks. Once this training is complete, engineers will have a federal license to operate a train.
Next, you’ll begin your on the job training. This typically lasts about sixteen weeks. During this time, you’ll be trained on a specific route and train. Different types of trains can handle very differently. It’s important that engineers are comfortable with the type of train they will ultimately be responsible for. This time is also dedicated to helping them get comfortable with their route. Engineers need to anticipate stops and other potential hazards. If they know their route like the back of their hand, they’ll have any easier time doing this.
Are Conductors Threatened?
Some say that the era of the conductor is coming to an end. Others claim that conductors will have a place on the American landscape for decades to come. There’s a case to be made for either view point. It’s important to consider the future of the profession and the economic climate surrounding railroads when deciding whether or not to go into this line of work.
We’ve already stated that conductors and engineers share some responsibilities. In fact, given that most engineers were once conductors, most engineers are trained in all of the tasks that conductors do. Some train companies have begun to wonder if this makes the conductor’s role redundant. Train companies like Montana Rail Link have even gone so far as to eliminate conductors altogether. Their freight trains are run by an engineer with an assistant engineer.
Most train companies still employ conductors on their freight trains. In fact, many of them are contractually obligated to do so. Union contracts with these companies insist that every train be accompanies by at least one conductor. Said contracts would have to be renegotiated before conductors could be removed from freight train crews.
Such changes are opposed not only by the conductors’ union, but also by the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers. Although engineers are technically capable of doing all that conductors do, they also have very important jobs of their own. The engineers’ union has expressed concern over having engineers operate alone and have to split their attention. They fear it would be unsafe for engineers to concern themselves with anything else when involved in safely operating a train. Of course, this attitude doesn’t apply to passenger train conductors, whose responsibilities require them to move about train cabins, something the engineer would be incapable of doing. However, their role may be threatened by fluctuating passenger volume. While passenger train conductors are certainly not going anywhere, they may find themselves few and far between in times of low demand.
Future of Rail Jobs
Conductors aren’t the only ones who worry about finding themselves on the chopping block. The popularity and success of the railroad industry has waxed and waned over the decades, sometimes enjoying a heyday while other times falling fast toward obsoleteness. The question is where is it now and where is it headed. The answer varies dramatically depending on who you ask
.
Some people insist that rail jobs are threatened because there’s less demand for train transport (freight or otherwise). They say that train companies have been scaling back crews and even laying off good people. Those that are left urge others to avoid this industry altogether, warning that there’s no future in it. But is this true? Maybe five years ago, or ten. At least that’s what railroad supporters might say. They claim that these days freight travel is a faster and cheaper option for transporting goods across the country than trucking. Freight trains don’t have to employ as many people per ton of goods than trucking companies do, making it easier for them to offer better prices. What’s more, freight is a safer option than trucks. A moment’s distraction on an eight-hour train ride is not nearly as likely to result in the disaster that a moment’s distraction on the highway might. As more and more companies realize this and move to freight travel, more and more freight trains are being put into motion.
Freight trains are also more popular for bulk cargo like steel, iron, and coal. These tend to be exceedingly heavy, making it a challenge to transport them via truck. On the other side of that coin, however, is the fact that some bulk commodities (like coal) are no longer as strong as they used to be. As these industries flag, so too does the freight industry.
Finally, advances in technology have helped the passenger railroad industry as well. As trains get faster, they become more competitive with other modes of transportation. Suddenly Americans might prefer to take an Amtrak train from Boston to New York or from Denver to San Francisco over flying. What’s more, as trains get stronger, they are able to hold greater numbers of people, making train travel more affordable than flying or, in some cases, even paying for gas.
In 2014, Forbes published an article claiming that the railroad industry was experiencing a new heyday for many of the aforementioned reasons. They stated that industrywide revenue, that was 67.7 billion dollars in 2009, had increased nineteen percent to 80.6 billion dollars by 2014. According to Forbes, and many others, this boom is a direct result of technological advances that have helped make the railroad relevant again. This is good news for prospective conductors, as the increased revenue also lead to 10,000 new jobs.
Conductor- The Heart & Soul of the Railroad Page 10