So you want to work for the railroad?

[Anonymous]

I agree with Randy. Track work is VERY HARD work. I have done a limited amount (as limited as possible) and it will tire you out cause you to twist, turn, sprain, strain, hurt and abuse your body to limits you can only imagine in your darkest nightmares. Also, lets not forget wearing heavy protective clothing all the time (particularly bad in the summer), being around all sorts of things that can and will burn you (welding crucibles, torches, grinders, rope match, switch heaters, etc) shock you (generators, live wires, etc), cut you (chain saws, track equipment, motors, drills, track saws, etc), pinch you (rail, hand tools, switch points, frogs, switch stands and machines), and lets not forget freeze you (plows, jordan spreaders, switchstands, shovels and anything metal in the winter).

Darn, almost forgot about the danger of working on or near live tracks. Even with working limits and flagmen it is not fullproof. I still remember the day when I was running west near the site of a new highway bridge over the tracks and the river parallelling the double track. I reached the flagman a MOW foreman on the radio and received permission through the work area and was advised "come on through, make some noise, everybody is in the clear", only to round the curve at 40 with my three widebodies (Dash9s) and see the boom of a track hoe swing across the tracks about 100 yards in front of me. Next thing I heard was a thud as my conductor hit the floor and the rush of air from my full service application on the 80 car mixed freight coupled with the blast of the horn I was holding down with my other hand from my kneeling position on the floor of the cab. Luckily the idiot operator saw us about the same time we saw him and kept the boom moving. We cleared it by inches as we sailed by at about 35 mph...whew. Time for an underwear stop after that...and you wondered what we keep in those grips...lol...

In short, it is still a miracle to me that anyone volunteers to do it. I love giving track guys cab rides just to see the pride in their faces riding over "their" track. We couldn't do it without them...

LC

[TH&B]

You get big arms and a dark tan, the "chicks" will dig you physicaly.

[Randy Stahl]

Those HR people make it sound so easy !
What they didn't tell you is about hand shoveling snow from several miles of track after a derailment, running from lightning and tornadoes, having much of your blood sucked by various insects, it's just not as glamorous as the UP H.R. description.
Randy

[jjlamkin]

Found this job posting on the UP website for a Track Laborer:
(And I thought my job was rough answering the phone all day here at our Help Desk helping people with their computers!!!)
Duties:


A track laborer’s job consists of repairing and rebuilding railroad track, using hand tools to do so. Specific duties will include, but are not limited to, removing and replacing ties, pulling and driving spikes, shoveling rock ballast, loading and unloading equipment and material, and various other tasks, as assigned.
OBSERVE THE CONDITION OF TRACK, TRACKBED, AND TRACK RIGHT-OF-WAY FOR PROBLEMS OR DEFECTS. Make quick visual inspections for broken rails, defective switches and signals, deteriorating trackbed, track obstructions and weather related problems; check switch points; observe right-of-way and passing trains for shifted loads and spillage.
PERFORM TRACK MAINTENANCE, REPAIR, AND INSTALLATION. Drive spikes into ties and spike maul; pull spikes with claw bar; install and remove rail anchors; slide, place, and aliqn tie plates under rails; cut in rails; plug spike holes; with assistance, lift rails using manual track jack; broom off dust and snow from movable track parts or switches; set up switch heaters.
HANDLE AND MOVE TRACK MATERIALS AND EQUIPMENT. With assistance, load/unload equipment weighing 85- to 100 lbs. (air hammer, rail drill) from back of cart or truck and carry to work site; without assistance, load/unload equipment weighing 50 to 75 lbs. (track jack, rail saw, jitterbug); with assistance, remove and install rail using rail tongs, with assistance, remove ties and slide new ties into place using two-man tie tongs; with assistance, move debris away from work site (spike cans, anchors).
MAINTAIN TRACKBED. Remove and replace ballast; tamp ballast; unload or assist in unloading ballast from cart or truck.
WORK WITH EQUIPMENT. Safely and effectively operate the following: an air hammer to drive spikes; air or gas powered wrenches to loosen or tighten track bolts; rail drill to drill holes in rail; portable abrasive rail saw to cut rails.
PRACTICE SAFE WORK HABITS. Understand and follow company and industry safety rules, practices, and procedures, wear prescribed safety apparel; take appropriate action when conditions threaten safety of self or coworkers; ensure equipment and work area are in safe operating condition before starting work; monitor for emergency situations by identifying visual signals and warning sounds.