"Dinger Dynasty" demise (human interest story)

[Datafever]

End of the line for railroad's 'Dinger dynasty'

The long, mournful wail of a 3,000-horsepower locomotive's horn on the outskirts of downtown Los Angeles signaled the end Tuesday of American railroads' "Dinger dynasty."

After 43 years in the locomotive cab, third-generation passenger train engineer Tom Dinger pulled into Union Station for the last time.

"It's a little bit melancholy," Dinger said as he eased up on the huge engine's black-handled throttle.

For nearly 90 years, a Dinger has been at the controls of U.S. passenger trains.

"I love this job. It was my father's career, my father's father's career and mine. We've been through it all — the Great Depression, World War II, the transition from steam to diesel and all of the more recent changes in passenger rail service."

Full story here 

[edblysard]

The shame of it is he's right...not too many kids follow their fathers into the business.

So we end up hiring a bunch of kids with no work ethic or commitment, and we suffer for it.

When I hired out, if you were kin to anybody here, you busted your butt to do it right, because their name rested on you...you screw up and it looked bad on the guy you were kin too...

If your Dad switched 100 cars a shift, you better switch 101 at least...or if you uncle could get a train from one end of the road to the other and back in under 8 hours, you better make it in 7 1/2...just to show everyone you were as good as him, and had listened to what he taught you.

Now days, seems you can't get the kids out of the shanty with a stick of dynamite and a crow bar....

[wallyworld]

I enjoyed the article. It was a refreshing, positive note that he received the due recognition from his peers in such a memorable way. It made me reflect on the days when whom you worked with, was at times, just as close to the individual as one's family. I have many warm memories of folks I worked with that I have not seen in decades. A less positive note, at least from my point of view is how many of us have stayed with a position through the course of a working life...when it used to be common.

[WSOR 3801]

I've worked with a few second-generation railroaders.  Two of them couldn't get hired on where their fathers worked.  They all hired out right around 18, and I don't think they were ready for the job yet.  Sometimes it seems the work ethic also went offshore.

[zardoz]

Now days, seems you can't get the kids out of the shanty with a stick of dynamite and a crow bar....

Ain't that the truth!!!!

[edbenton]

Same thing in the OTR trucking industry alot of the newbies think 500 miles a day is a good day of driving.  I was a second gen driver I followed my father into the field and him and I were a team for a couple years we actually ran a team out of hours in mulitple logbooks time after time.  We actually had a stuffed monkey running a logbook so we could keep going one month we were running so hard.  But when you are always pulling the companies B### out of the fire you have to do something.

[nbrodar]

I'm a third generation railroader.  Between my grandfather, my father, and myself, there is almost 100 years of service with the Pennsy or one of it's successors.

I will agree with Ed, that for the most part, those with relatives working in the same area, tend to be better workers.  Railroading is a close knit world, and you live and die by your reputation. Not only do the nex-gens have to thier own rep, they have to live up to their father/brother/uncle/grandfather/whoever's rep.  It works in reverse too.  

Fortunately, I had the luxury of hiring where almost no-one worked with my father.  He was a corporate officer by this time.  So, my name's Nick, not Dave Brodar's kid. I've met many people that worked with my father (and a few that knew my grandfather).  All have said he was one of the best railroaders they've ever known.  So the last thing I want to do is tarnish the storied Brodar name.

I'll have to say, some of the new hires are the best workers I have.  Not the smartest ones yet, but they'll go out and give it their all.  The old-heads sit around and complain about how it used to be.

Nick

[Datafever]

Sometimes it seems the work ethic also went offshore.

I think that is a natural consequence of having kids that grow up playing video games.