This industry is hiring like crazy, good pay, can't be outsourced

[kranky]

The freight railroad industry expects to hire 80,000 people over the next few years. Average pay at Class I railroads is over $60k and have great benefits. Railroads are facing a huge shortage of employees as people retire. At Union Pacific RR, the average age of the workforce is 50!

The railroads are operating at near-capacity and are putting in new equipment to make it posslble to run more trains. That also will fuel more hiring.

Train crews work long hours and are away from home a lot, but if you are looking for a good job that doesn't require a $100,000 college degree and can't be outsourced to China, you might want to check into it.

 

[imported_hscorpio]

Interesting. I always thought working on trains would be cool after seeing the old Emperor of the north pole movie.

 

[RichUK]

Manual labour, yuck. But shesh the pay looks good.

 

[skyking]

Originally posted by: RichUK
Manual labour, yuck. But shesh the pay looks good.

getting paid big bucks to keep in shape = priceless.

 

[RichUK]

Originally posted by: skyking

Originally posted by: RichUK
Manual labour, yuck. But shesh the pay looks good.

getting paid big bucks to keep in shape = priceless.

True dat

 

[imported_hscorpio]

Originally posted by: skyking

Originally posted by: RichUK
Manual labour, yuck. But shesh the pay looks good.

getting paid big bucks to keep in shape = priceless.

How much manual labor is involved? Its not like they still have to shovel coal right, and trains are getting kinda high tech these days I thought.

 

[RichUK]

Originally posted by: hscorpio

Originally posted by: skyking

Originally posted by: RichUK
Manual labour, yuck. But shesh the pay looks good.

getting paid big bucks to keep in shape = priceless.

How much manual labor is involved? Its not like they still have to shovel coal right, and trains are getting kinda high tech these days I thought.

I would have thought there would be a lot of track maintenance involved. That?s hard graft.

 

[skyking]

Originally posted by: RichUK

Originally posted by: hscorpio

Originally posted by: skyking

Originally posted by: RichUK
Manual labour, yuck. But shesh the pay looks good.

getting paid big bucks to keep in shape = priceless.

How much manual labor is involved? Its not like they still have to shovel coal right, and trains are getting kinda high tech these days I thought.

I would have thought there would be a lot of track maintenance involved. That?s hard graft.

It's also mechanized to a large extent. I think the jobs the OP is referring to are more along the lines of operation, not construction/maintenance.

 

[kranky]

There are jobs in all areas. Some work is outside, and that can be in all kinds of weather, but the manual labor is not like being a full-time ditch digger.

Look at it this way - if the average age of the UPRR worker is over 50, do you really think they are putting in full days of hard physical labor? Their health insurance premiums would be through the roof.

 

[AnyMal]

If you want a stable job with great pay and no fear of outsourcing you have to get into the medical field.

 

[Jassi]

I've applied with Union Pacific's engineering group (they are doing some cool stuff) but no response yet. My main reason was the stability.

 

[ChaoZ]

Originally posted by: AnyMal
If you want a stable job with great pay and no fear of outsourcing you have to get into the medical field.

Some positions are being outsourced.

 

[imported_griffis]

Yeh I do Application and Business Solutions for railroads. Hope you like to work 12 hour days and travel your a$$ off and be on call alot. Other than that the money is damn good

 

[BrunoPuntzJones]

Originally posted by: ChaoZ

Originally posted by: AnyMal
If you want a stable job with great pay and no fear of outsourcing you have to get into the medical field.

Some positions are being outsourced.

I was going to say, hell even surgeries can be outsourced. Dr. just operates a robot remotely.

Radiologists can be outsourced...tons of things

 

[RichUK]

Don't truck drivers get paid a fair amount? I wouldn't want to be a truck driver however, driving all day long would send me loopy.

 

[vi edit]

Originally posted by: BrunoPuntzJones

Originally posted by: ChaoZ

Originally posted by: AnyMal
If you want a stable job with great pay and no fear of outsourcing you have to get into the medical field.

Some positions are being outsourced.

I was going to say, hell even surgeries can be outsourced. Dr. just operates a robot remotely.

Radiologists can be outsourced...tons of things

These account for a very, very small % of the overall number of employees that work in a hospital/health clinic. Nurses (of varying degrees/specialities) make up the bulk of it, then you have rad tech, resp techs, pharmacists, pharmacy techs, physical therapists, PT techs, MD's, dieticians, ect that make up many other positions.

Surgeries can be outsourced to other countries, but it's just not an option or a consideration of many people. Radiology *reading* is being outsourced to major consulting firms in Switzerland and other countries, but again, that is a fraction of the overall care that is provided hands on and can not be replaced.

 

[txrandom]

The railroad industry is hiring a lot of computer scienitists.

 

[NEWKILLA]

a bunch of my buds are on the RR--they don t work hard at all
12 hour days- 5 days a week- 60 hr wks--20 hours OT mandatory
$25-an hour straight time, $37-on O-T pretty simple math

they work physically about 2-4 hrs a day

***K***

 

[6000SUX]

Originally posted by: vi_edit

Originally posted by: BrunoPuntzJones

Originally posted by: ChaoZ

Originally posted by: AnyMal
If you want a stable job with great pay and no fear of outsourcing you have to get into the medical field.

Some positions are being outsourced.

I was going to say, hell even surgeries can be outsourced. Dr. just operates a robot remotely.

Radiologists can be outsourced...tons of things

These account for a very, very small % of the overall number of employees that work in a hospital/health clinic. Nurses (of varying degrees/specialities) make up the bulk of it, then you have rad tech, resp techs, pharmacists, pharmacy techs, physical therapists, PT techs, MD's, dieticians, ect that make up many other positions.

Surgeries can be outsourced to other countries, but it's just not an option or a consideration of many people. Radiology *reading* is being outsourced to major consulting firms in Switzerland and other countries, but again, that is a fraction of the overall care that is provided hands on and can not be replaced.

I completely agree. I'm hoping that the law will prove to be largely outsourcing-proof-- although there's nothing to stop waves of immigrants from taking the bar. It would be fun to rate occupations by their resistance to outsourcing. A particular job's outsourcing index would probably depend also on other factors (such as whether the employer was a government contractor or the government itself, etc.).

 

[marvdmartian]

Originally posted by: AnyMal
If you want a stable job with great pay and no fear of outsourcing you have to get into the medical field.

Environmental cleanup ought to be good for another century or so too. Figure we've spent the past 150 years crapping up the environment, and are just now looking at cleaning up after ourselves...... :roll:

Now as long as this railroad industry doesn't INsource those jobs to the 12 gazillion illegal aliens in this country!

 

[jme5343]

Feel free to correct any of this Kranky, I get the impression you are in this field as well.

I dispatch for a short line that interchanges directly with the UP and BNSF. Previously I was a laborer, machine operator and foreman. I know people who work for both. On our railroad, the worst part for an engineer or conductor is the hours.

The track maintenance is definitely work, sweat, labor, dirty, etc. BUT, you know when you're working, you know when you go home, much different than train service. IMO, this is why engineers and conductors get paid so well, the inconvience of the hours. The work isn't really all that hard.

FRA dictates that you can only work 12 hours at a time. If you put in 12+ (work plus van ride to home terminal) you get a mandatory 10 hours off. If you work less than 12 you're only guaranteed 8 hours. Say you get off at midnight after working 11 hours. I can call you again at 6:30am to be at work at 8:00am. Had you worked 12+,. I'd call you at 8:30 to be at work at 10am.

Sure, there are days that you do a lot of switching. Throwing switches, hooking up air, tieing and untieing handbrakes, it all takes a toll. But, there's also a lot of time in the seat. In fact, the class I railroads are trying to get away of the little 5-10 car stops, they're relying on the shortline railroads to do that, then make larger interchanges to them, which works well for everyone. Also, in my experience with class I railroads, there are different jobs, switch engines, local turns and road crews. Switch engine = hardest manual work = home every night. Local crew = fair amount of switching, about the same time as you spend traveling between stations = home every night. Road crew = VERY little switiching and manual work = LOTS of time in the seat = not home nearly as often.

If I had to go to a class I railroad, I'd try to get on w/ the BNSF as a brakeman. It's the cake job

Kranky's right though, there's $$ to made!

edit: spelling

 

[kranky]

Excellent first-hand contribution, jmebonner. Nothing like hearing it from someone who is actually in the job.

 

[Journer]

i hate railroads...i cant wait till they are done away with...i get stopped by the damn train like twice a day >=(

 

[jadinolf]

Originally posted by: hscorpio

Originally posted by: skyking

Originally posted by: RichUK
Manual labour, yuck. But shesh the pay looks good.

getting paid big bucks to keep in shape = priceless.

How much manual labor is involved? Its not like they still have to shovel coal right, and trains are getting kinda high tech these days I thought.

Smart man.:thumbsup:

 

[Tom]

would a fifty year old have a shot at jobs in this field ?