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I grew up with the railroad. Dad was a conductor with 37 years of service (MP then UP)when he retired a couple of years ago. He was also on my hometown's fire department and had been for around 30 years. So I have two professions in my blood that both have extremely strange and demanding hours. Knowing what both of them are like was/is very important in my life now and in the past. <br /> <br />I worked as a volunteer firefighter in college and then 8 1/2 years as a career firefighter/officer. The fire department obviously had a regular schedule but could be hard on the body responding to calls at all hours. <br /> <br />Ten years ago, I hired out with the Union Pacific in Kansas City, working west to Marysville. Conductor then engineer and then (Egad) into management. Dad didn't tell me for a long time but had told my wife, he didn't want me to go to work for the railroad and definitely didn't want me going into management. <br /> <br />All this background to say that Mark Hemphill's note is completely accurate as to the particulars of the lifestyle. When I was on the road, I didn't need an alarm clock, only a cell phone and pager. As a manager, the schedule was a bit more predictable but the hours were as long or longer. <br /> <br />Right now, I'm Manager Chemical Transportation Safety with UPRR in Kansas City. I'm the Haz-Mat guy for my territory, which means that I'm subject to call 12 days out of 14. Schedule?? Some days there is none, responding to incidents that may last several days. Home time?? Better than when I was on the road most times but I'm just now finishing up two weeks away from home doing training across Colorado and Nebraska. Pay?? Good. I'm not the highest paid employee of the railroad but it's comfortable. Not as much as if I was still working KC-Marysville, though. But right now, I have the best career that I have ever had. I LOVE what I'm doing!! <br /> <br />You can make lots of money working for the railroad but it takes its toll in other places. It's going to be a wild ride the next few years as the railroad industry replaces huges numbers of employees who are retiring. Not everyone who walks through the door is going to stay when they realize just how much of their life (soul) they are going to have to give up to work.
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