Any Class I engineers or conductors on here?

My son is a engineer/conductor for CSX.  Anything you would like me to ask him?

Paul Edgar

Paul Edgar posted:

My son is a engineer/conductor for CSX.  Anything you would me to ask him?

 

Paul Edgar

Can you ask him about how his schedule is? What it’s actually like being on an extra board?

This is a good subject.  When I was retiring from the Carpenters Union, I was seriously looking into getting a job with SEPTA or Amtrak.  In my research, I was told by others, in the business and not in the business, that I would be very disappointed once hired.  They claimed I would get the worse assignments, etc.  I was 57 at the time.  

From time to time, I have regretted not pushing forward with it.  Of course, at my age now, 70, it's probably out of the question.

But I would also like to hear what it's really like from those who are in the business.  

Well somewhat different was on the extra board at the chicago transit authority for 14 years and can say at first it was very tough. Would get the worst assignments midnight shifts etc on Sunday back then we had to collect fares and it was a nightmare as they had what was called a supertransfers which enabled you to ride all day as many times as you wanted those early start runs everyone bought them.

Working as a conductor  with head out window a rule for 50ft was spat at had eggs thrown at me robbed  gun pointed at me etc saw it all.

Then the show up jobs were the worst as you would sit at terminal for 3 hours in case someone called in sick or missed if all went well you then had 3-4 hours off then came back for 3 more hours of the same.

Your day was tied up not knowing what could happen and if the clerk did not like you well.

Many times can recall in the last 3 ours of sitting with half hour left something would open up and it could be at another terminal yes you would get paid for time sat plus the run but my gosh .

There are so many stories could tell with not enough space here . Things have changed since retirement like the hours they can keep you how the pay etc is calculated .

No regrets i get a monthly pension and after those 14 years was able to pick jobs 4 times a year in my classification as a switchman and worked another 14 years at that. Was qualified as a flagman/motorman/switchman and performed those jobs on the extra board.

Little side note never ever had a major violation such as an accident with the train in anyway .

Funny thing back then we had spotters hired by company to watch over us and you never knew who they were.

Once was called into office to see superintendent mind you this was back in 1981 he asked do you smoke? I said sure and reached into shirt pocket and offered him one he said "put those away" and showed me the write up ticket violation yes i was guilty and admitted to smoking in the cab.

He tore up ticket and simply said " don't get caught again".Those days surely are long gone.

Now i vape and have not smoked for 8 years and feel much better.

Retired ATU Member Local 308

Max Warfel posted:

I am just curious as to how many engineers or conductors we have on here? I have some questions, mainly for anyone working or have worked (in the recent past) for Norfolk Southern. 

 

Thanks in advance. 

If you are hesitating, you need to do it. 

You'll carry the memories of everything from your interviews through your first day at McDonough through every hour you spent working for the rest of your life. 

You are young and asking.   Unless you're married or have a child/dependent OR you're aversive to working at night, on call,  or outside, if it's a dream of yours DO IT!

To put it simple  Extra list is like being pond scum

very enlightening links Kelly, Makes me rethink going to work for NJ Transit.

Ben, glad to see your happy now!

Good info.  Makes working as a carpenter apprentice, way back in the day, sound like a dream job. 

There are some jobs out there which are best, I think, for those who are single.  Military; Police, Fire, EMS; and railroad engine service are those.  I think these are the types of jobs where the job will disturb the family or vise versa.

I know things have changed "big time" but  working a spare board wasn't that bad... You certainly gained a lot of experience  early in your career.  Any job any time... I spent about 8 years working  the Toronto spare board. 

     CNR   CP and ONR still had their own passenger trains along with all the freight assignments. I've been . Conductor pilot of just about every type of track equipment

(SRS 123) I wonder it that thing is still operational)...

 The spare board protected all the work . Baggage cars..  Snow plows ..Weight freight ...Through freight . Even made a trip as a  second engineman.

We always the opportunity to book rest at the completion of the trip.  Up to 24 hours ..so if you had  something you really wanted   to do.... Book rest.... or as a last resort book sick...

Funny how things go ...My cousin who's about a year older hired on a year or so before me and stepped right into a regular assignment. 

Max, retired conductor from NS here.  I worked out of Shire Oaks yard in Elrama, Pa just outside of Pittsburgh, PA.  Ran coal from Elrama, PA to Altoona, PA.   Is he new?  If he is he will definately be on extra board.  There are only a few steady shift jobs on NS when I was there.  And the old heads get those jobs (seniority rules).  I was on extra board my whole career with them.  Sometimes you are soooo busy it's crazy.  Other times you might be off for several days at a time.  Extra board isn't bad once you get used to it.

Rule292 and 645 above are correct.  You are on call 24/7 and never know when you will be called or how long you will work or should I say be on the job.  Eight hours is what the RR wants you to work but you may work as long as 12 hours,  But, if you get stuck out in nomans land you could be on the train for many many hours.  I was on the job, so to speak, for 19 hours one time.  That's ok though because you get paid over time after 8 hours. 

If you have any more questions just ask me.

Rick

RICKC posted:

Max, retired conductor from NS here.  I worked out of Shire Oaks yard in Elrama, Pa just outside of Pittsburgh, PA.  Ran coal from Elrama, PA to Altoona, PA.   Is he new?  If he is he will definately be on extra board.  There are only a few steady shift jobs on NS when I was there.  And the old heads get those jobs (seniority rules).  I was on extra board my whole career with them.  Sometimes you are soooo busy it's crazy.  Other times you might be off for several days at a time.  Extra board isn't bad once you get used to it.

Rule292 and 645 above are correct.  You are on call 24/7 and never know when you will be called or how long you will work or should I say be on the job.  Eight hours is what the RR wants you to work but you may work as long as 12 hours,  But, if you get stuck out in nomans land you could be on the train for many many hours.  I was on the job, so to speak, for 19 hours one time.  That's ok though because you get paid over time after 8 hours. 

If you have any more questions just ask me.

Rick

Hits the extra board life perfectly.

Two other things that you should understand Max is that you could be assigned to anywhere in your division.  So you may have to drive to distant terminals or work locations and some can be a good hike (hours possibly). 

And computers have made life on the extra board more predictable, giving you the ability to watch how fast the board is turning and where you are located. 

Like one fellow said "when nothing goes well, the pay's well".    If you are not scared off by the on call lifestyle and the outdoor work environment it's a great way to make a living.   And you'll appreciate your railroad retirement  even though that is the furthest from your mind right now.

645 posted:  Max Warfel - are you serious? Working off the extra board means one is on call 24/7 with no predictable schedule unless one is lucky to get a yard or local assignment for a few days in a row. Basically every day can and usually is different. The hardest part would be not having a regular sleeping pattern - might get a 9am call one day then a 1am call a couple of days later followed by a 3pm call or whatever once the minimum number of hours to rest are attained after going off duty on the previous assignment.

 

It isn't everyone's cup of tea.  Yes, it's tough to acclimate yourself to the irregular and often inconvenient work "schedule".  And the railroad has its failings, which are out of your control.  You can't control how they maintain the engines and the track, and how they call you for duty.

And there is usually a group of employees sitting around and waiting for their train to be made up or to arrive at the on-duty point.  I call them the Sewing Circle, because they are like a bunch of old spinsters, complaining, complaining, complaining.  They are not a good influence on others, and, if you do not have the self-control necessary to quietly keep yourself out of that group of complainers, you'll think that the railroad is really abusing you, in spite of the fact that you have an interesting job that pays very well.  If that's the case, work somewhere else and enjoy life.

I really enjoyed my railroad career, 14 years in engine service and 25 years in management.  As an Engineer, I simply made rest a priority, and took time to attain it.  I did not have a big bunch of pals to try to keep me awake doing other things.  I had to give up playing sports and see my friends less often, but it was very satisfying work to me, even the less desirable jobs.  I know it is different today, with few managers having actual, meaningful, experience in train or engine service, so you need to learn all the rules and processes and play the game.  The reward comes when you have made a train complete its trip when either the equipment, or the weather, unusual conditions, or snake-bitten bad luck worked against you.

So, do you have the personality to rise and fall with the tide, take your turn in the barrel on both the best and worst assignments, to work with certain unmotivated crew members as well as some really good ones, be supervised by people who manage by process rather than by understanding how you do your work, manage your off-duty time well (at home and away from home), and to not take everything personally?  If you do, then you might make a good railroader.

25 years as Engineer on NS .Hired as a brakeman in 91' .11 more years  to retire.                                                        I can hold about any type of pool job,both short and interdivisional, yard jobs some road switchers,but I have enjoyed being in the extra list this winter. I didn't have to work as often as a regular job, and guaranteed,.But you only can receive so many days (90) towards next years vacation when it takes 240.                     So here soon I'll have to go to a regular job where overtime and the fact you work actual days counts towards the vacation tally.                      But to me the extra board isn't bad,plus unlike years ago I can hop on the computer,tablet or phone and  check my status and vacancies. Years ago we had a pager or babysit the phone waiting to be called. That was bad.

We had a party line for about 6 months... 4 or 5 people on the same line each with their distinct ring. You had to be  fast to get to the phone or someone would pick it up and hang up especially in the middle of the night.  I think our ring was one long and 2 short. Easy to remember   .wearing the green.(sections)

Gregg posted:

We had a party line for about 6 months... 

Gregg, I had not thought about this for decades, but, in 1970, when I began work at the railroad, I had to qualify to have a private line.  So doctors, lawyers, those in law enforcement or the fire department -- and railroaders -- could get a private line, after filling out the papers and subject to verification.

Number 90 posted:

It isn't everyone's cup of tea.......If you do, then you might make a good railroader.

Yeah, Tom has it right! 
I enjoyed my time on the extra list. It was something different every day. Sometimes a good job, sometimes not. I even got to work on most of the eastern region making "emergency runs" when other districts were out of men. Between the extra list and no train schedules, I was able to take care of the children while the wife was at work. I was also able to run errands and such during the day when the nine to five-ers were stuck at work. The added bonus was that I could "mark off" anytime that I wanted. Not so for the "management" who were expected to be on the scene anytime something out of the ordinary happened. We really did have it better over the TM's & RF's!
I enjoyed my career! And, I am glad that it happened when it did!!!

But, and it is one big BUT, things have changed!!!

Good luck.

 You really wouldn't like it now Jim. The contract had changed so much.

I like some of the perks,such as the PPI bonus. But you can only mark off one time a month,and only Monday thrust Thursday. And no missed calls or rule infractions . 

But now you have to bid week to week on your job bid. I've  always been on a bubble anyway and bounce everywhere.  So this winter I stayed on the extra board. And I was the only one on it coming in first out everyday.

If your asking about a schedule and working for the railroad I would suggest that railroading is not for you. class one railroads pretty much own you and your time.

I just happened upon this old post of mine and thought it might be time for a life update...

Well I took the plunge over 2 years ago. I hired out with NS in Atlanta in June of 2018 and have been with them ever since. I worked on their yard extra board for almost a year, before things started getting tight (in terms of jobs getting cut off and furloughs). I was forced out to the mainline extra board where unlike the yard you don’t have certain times they can call you for work. It was only maybe 5-6 months on the mainline before I got furloughed. They ended up furloughing up to around 80 total once the virus really took effect. I was off for just shy of 6 months. While I was off I started a new job (Monday thru Friday) but knew I was going back to the railroad once they called.

It was the beginning of August when I went back. Since then I’ve been working the mainline making trips between Atlanta and Chattanooga, and Atlanta and Macon, as well as working some of the locals we have.

I can honestly say that I enjoy almost every minute of it. I’ve gotten used to being on call a lot, and working in crappy weather conditions, as well as catching the absolute worst jobs on the railroad... but I can’t see myself doing anything else as a career.

I’ve attached two photos. The first one is me while in training coming back from Chattanooga on a rack train in a ex-CSX locomotive. The next photo is on a pig train right around 2 years after the first photo.

"...what matters is deciding to get on."

Max,

I am glad that you are doing what you wanted to do! As a former NS employee, I am embarrassed at the way they have treated their employees at times. Hang in there. Hopefully you, like myself, will have a long and enjoyable career!

I assume that you are a Conductor. When will you begin Engineer training?

@Hot Water posted:

I assume that you are a Conductor. When will you begin Engineer training?

The normal timeframe down here is around 9-10 years after being a conductor... I’ve still got a ways to go.

It's good to hear that you are enjoying railroad work, Max.  And the contrast in the two photos you posted shows that you have taken on the "look" of a railroader.

Just remember to avoid being sucked into the sewing circle which I described in my earlier post in this Topic.  And do not be bullied into routinely taking shortcuts with Operating Rules. At some time you are bound to be part of a crew when something goes badly, and, if you are complying with the applicable rules, you will not have to do anything but tell the truth about your involvement.  Some rules seem like overkill, but, if the railroad institutes a badly conceived rule, the best way to get it changed is to comply with it and thereby highlight its weaknesses.

It always gives me pleasure to see young folks adapt to the unusual but rewarding life that railroading provides.  Feel free to email me off the Forum any time you have a confidential question or comment.  My email address is on my profile page.

I’ve been a certified Engineer on the Norfolk Southern for almost 28 years of the 30 year’s I’ve  been employed .

I work on the Pocahontas Division , Kenova District .

Basically a short line guy here... Conrail shared assets

Never worked for a class 1 railroad, but provided financing for the UP, SP and DRGW. Equipment finance and working capital,,,, worked with  CEOs and CFOs and an owner.

I started as a Carman at the Topeka Shops on the Santa Fe. Later transferred to Emporia as a Fireman, and later an Engineer on the Middle Division. In1988, they closed Emporia as a crew change point, and moved us east, to work out of Kansas City. Mostly worked the road to Wellington, Ark City & Newton, & the branches. Some firing on Amtrak early on, and a few switch engines. Retired with 42 years at the end of 2010, with millions of miles.

Hey Max....my 2 cents, although I'm just a volunteer at the B&O Museum. If you are single; a young buck; and eager...BY ALL MEANS CONTINUE WORKING AT THAT RR!!  You only get one life...do what you want...sort of ignore the hardships...and carry on. I dont think you will regret it!