***Does anybody work for the railroad?***

[Munson]

Or do you know anybody that works for them? Do they like working for them, or do they hate it? I'm looking to get into a different line of work since I quit my job at UPS. I'm about to apply for a few different railroad jobs that sound interesting, such as:

diesel engine mechanic
diesel engine electrician
conductor
freight car repairman

All of these are entry level railroad jobs, which would be good for me. They include minimal classroom training, with plenty of on the job training. I think the conductors have to spend more time in the classroom than the others. Out of these four jobs, I like the conductor and diesel engine mechanic the best.

I'm also considering applying for a management position at BNSF. It pays the most, but it also comes with the most initial classroom training(huge negative for me) and the most headaches(unions). And from what I understand, you can't really pick the location you'd like to work at, but I could be wrong. But you also get bonuses, and I think you get an allowance for relocation.

Any comments or advice?


And for anybody looking for a job, there are tons of railroad jobs available all over the country, whether you have experience or not. Here are the sites I've been looking at...

BNSF
CSX
Union Pacific
Norfolk Southern - you'll have to register to see the available jobs
KC Southern