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Most workers begin as yard laborers, and later may have the opportunity to train for engineer or conductor jobs. Employment of most rail transportation occupations is expected to decline; however, employment of subway and streetcar operators will have average growth. Competition for available job opportunities is expected to be keen. Nearly 3 out of 4 workers are members of unions, and earnings are relatively high. Other related transportation workers include bus drivers, truck drivers and driver/sales workers, and those working in water transportation occupations.
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Many rail transportation employees work nights, weekends, and holidays because trains operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Many work more than a 40-hour workweek. Seniority usually dictates who receives the more desirable shifts.
Most freight trains are unscheduled, and few workers on these trains have scheduled assignments. Instead, workers place their names on a list and wait for their turn to work. Jobs usually are assigned on short notice and often at odd hours. Those who work on trains operating between points hundreds of miles apart may spend several nights at a time away from home.
Workers on passenger trains ordinarily have regular and reliable shifts. Also, the appearance, temperature, and accommodations of passenger trains are more comfortable than those of freight trains.
Rail yard workers spend most of their time outdoors in varying weather. The work of conductors and engineers on local runs, on which trains frequently stop at stations to pick up and deliver cars, is physically demanding. Climbing up and down and getting off moving cars is strenuous and can be dangerous.
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Rail transportation workers held 101,000 jobs in 2002, distributed among the detailed occupations as follows:
Railroad conductors and yardmasters 38,000
Locomotive engineers and firers 33,000
Railroad brake, signal, and switch operators 15,000
Subway, streetcar operators and all other rail transportation workers 15,000
Most rail transportation workers are employed in either the rail transportation industry or support activities for the industry. The rest work primarily for local governments as subway and streetcar operators and for mining and manufacturing establishments who operate their own locomotives and dinkey engines to move railcars containing ore, coal, and other bulk materials.
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Median hourly earnings of rail transportation occupations in 2002 were relatively high, as indicated by the following tabulation:
Locomotive engineers and locomotive firers $23.26
Subway and streetcar operators and all other rail transportation workers 21.48
Railroad conductors and yardmasters 21.39
Railroad brake, signal, and switch operators 20.93
Most railroad workers are paid according to miles traveled or hours worked, whichever leads to higher earnings. Full-time employees have steadier work, more regular hours, increased opportunities for overtime work, and higher earnings than do those assigned to the extra board.
Almost three-quarters of railroad transportation workers are members of unions. Many different railroad unions represent various crafts on the railroads. Most railroad engineers are members of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, while most other railroad transportation workers are members of the United Transportation Union. Many subway operators are members of the Amalgamated Transit Union, while others belong to the Transport Workers Union of North America.
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1. Unknown author; Occupational Outlook Handbook 2004-2005 Edition; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics; Washington DC USA; 2004; Available http://www.bls.gov/oco/home.htm.
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