Posted: 1/1/2009 7:45:08 AM EDT
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any brother railroaders getting close to getting cutoff or have been cut off? word is that it will take 9 to 12 months to get back on track ( no pun intended ) no one is safe be sure to have a plan B
prayers with you all |
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WTF? I'm not a railroader, but I haul containers out of Alliance. What's goin on??? been a long time coming, over 200 guys, and a gal or two, in san antone cut off. i imagine another 30 or so by the end of january. business is super slow and the rr is cutting back. i hired in july of 03 and my seniority as far as holding a job is about what it was then. glad i kept my CDL edit; you haven't seen a decline in the container business? the stack trains are getting shorter and shorter. new intermodal facility in SA haven't seen the completed facility. wondering if it will change what goes into houston any? |
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WTF? I'm not a railroader, but I haul containers out of Alliance. What's goin on??? been a long time coming, over 200 guys, and a gal or two, in san antone cut off. i imagine another 30 or so by the end of january. business is super slow and the rr is cutting back. i hired in july of 03 and my seniority as far as holding a job is about what it was then. glad i kept my CDL edit; you haven't seen a decline in the container business? the stack trains are getting shorter and shorter. new intermodal facility in SA haven't seen the completed facility. wondering if it will change what goes into houston any? Yes, freight is down dramatically. |
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any brother railroaders getting close to getting cutoff or have been cut off? word is that it will take 9 to 12 months to get back on track ( no pun intended ) no one is safe be sure to have a plan B prayers with you all Shit I have been cut off since first of nov. I work out of Ft Worth for BNSF ( Bigger now still fucked). |
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"BNSF ( Bigger now still fucked)"
I like that. 
Hang in there bro. I think things should turn around in a couple more months. I hope any way. Do yall have a furllow board up there that lets you keep your medical? Also do you collect unemployment from the state or rr retirement? If you don't mind me asking, how much? I just want to know so I can prepair better In case I get cutoff. |
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"BNSF ( Bigger now still fucked)" I like that.
Hang in there bro. I think things should turn around in a couple more months. I hope any way. Do yall have a furllow board up there that lets you keep your medical? Also do you collect unemployment from the state or rr retirement? If you don't mind me asking, how much? I just want to know so I can prepair better In case I get cutoff. Union Pacific the outlook is 3 to 4 qtrs. before things turn around it ain't good fellas take cover |
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"BNSF ( Bigger now still fucked)" I like that.
Hang in there bro. I think things should turn around in a couple more months. I hope any way. Do yall have a furllow board up there that lets you keep your medical? Also do you collect unemployment from the state or rr retirement? If you don't mind me asking, how much? I just want to know so I can prepair better In case I get cutoff. Nope BNSF cut all Furlough boards (Retention Boards) which we didnt have in Ft Worth to begin with so.... I think the UTU had something to do with that. I'm on unemployment through the RRB but they are jacking with me on my pay right now. See I transfered from Montana back to Tejas in Feb. 08. When I did that I gave up all my seniority from up there with about 2 years in. Closed seniority up in Montana which sucks. And Im on the edge of losing my health coverage because of how it is set up in Ft. Worth based on how many starts you have a month which is I think 6 or 7. That damn crew caller keeps calling me for extra work but I won't pick up the phone. I figure after Feburary or mid March I will bump up North and start working again. The unemployment is suppose to pay around six to seven hundered a half kinda like a retention board but union dues and health coverage are not taken out. |
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"BNSF ( Bigger now still fucked)" I like that.
Hang in there bro. I think things should turn around in a couple more months. I hope any way. Do yall have a furllow board up there that lets you keep your medical? Also do you collect unemployment from the state or rr retirement? If you don't mind me asking, how much? I just want to know so I can prepair better In case I get cutoff. That is the same thing my union rep told me. I call BS on that. I guess we'll see? Union Pacific the outlook is 3 to 4 qtrs. before things turn around it ain't good fellas take cover |
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"BNSF ( Bigger now still fucked)" I like that.
Hang in there bro. I think things should turn around in a couple more months. I hope any way. Do yall have a furllow board up there that lets you keep your medical? Also do you collect unemployment from the state or rr retirement? If you don't mind me asking, how much? I just want to know so I can prepair better In case I get cutoff. Nope BNSF cut all Furlough boards (Retention Boards) which we didnt have in Ft Worth to begin with so.... I think the UTU had something to do with that. I'm on unemployment through the RRB but they are jacking with me on my pay right now. See I transfered from Montana back to Tejas in Feb. 08. When I did that I gave up all my seniority from up there with about 2 years in. Closed seniority up in Montana which sucks. And Im on the edge of losing my health coverage because of how it is set up in Ft. Worth based on how many starts you have a month which is I think 6 or 7. That damn crew caller keeps calling me for extra work but I won't pick up the phone. I figure after Feburary or mid March I will bump up North and start working again. The unemployment is suppose to pay around six to seven hundered a half kinda like a retention board but union dues and health coverage are not taken out. The retention boards and furlough boards are two different things. The BNSF came up with the retention board idea as a way keep from losing new guys to other railroads or careers when they got furloughed, then having to hire more new guys and start the cycle all over again. They negotiated an agreement with the BLET, and then the UTU had little choice but to follow suit. Now with the economy in the toilet, I'm sure that the company figures guys will have nowhere to go when they get furloughed anyway, so way pay the rentention board money. I am in the Northwest Division which is closed for trainman's seniority as well. No one brings their seniority in, no one takes it out. It has its advantages and disadvantages. Guess it's a good thing that this is where I want to be. 
As for your health care, as long you have not already had an interuption, you only need to work ONE day per month to maintain it. But once you have not worked in over 3 months and lose it, then you have to protect that 7 days of service to re-establish it. Try to keep it. No one is going to blame anyone for working one day a month off the furlough board to maintain their health care benefits. I think that railroad unemployment is $61/day, 5 days per week. |
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"BNSF ( Bigger now still fucked)" I like that.
Hang in there bro. I think things should turn around in a couple more months. I hope any way. Do yall have a furllow board up there that lets you keep your medical? Also do you collect unemployment from the state or rr retirement? If you don't mind me asking, how much? I just want to know so I can prepair better In case I get cutoff. Nope BNSF cut all Furlough boards (Retention Boards) which we didnt have in Ft Worth to begin with so.... I think the UTU had something to do with that. I'm on unemployment through the RRB but they are jacking with me on my pay right now. See I transfered from Montana back to Tejas in Feb. 08. When I did that I gave up all my seniority from up there with about 2 years in. Closed seniority up in Montana which sucks. And Im on the edge of losing my health coverage because of how it is set up in Ft. Worth based on how many starts you have a month which is I think 6 or 7. That damn crew caller keeps calling me for extra work but I won't pick up the phone. I figure after Feburary or mid March I will bump up North and start working again. The unemployment is suppose to pay around six to seven hundered a half kinda like a retention board but union dues and health coverage are not taken out. from what i hear the UTU is putting it in everyones ass |
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I always thought BNSF had system wide seniority. I guess I'm wrong.
I have heard everything from 125 people getting cut to 600. I have a feeling things will start to pick up this month after the new pres is sworn in. They might cut 200 people in Houston but they will be calling them back as soon as the middle of Feb. Houston has so much industry that trends that effect the rest of the country don't have as much of an effect down here. At least that's what I keep telling myself. |
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I always thought BNSF had system wide seniority. I guess I'm wrong. I have heard everything from 125 people getting cut to 600. I have a feeling things will start to pick up this month after the new pres is sworn in. They might cut 200 people in Houston but they will be calling them back as soon as the middle of Feb. Houston has so much industry that trends that effect the rest of the country don't have as much of an effect down here. At least that's what I keep telling myself. while it would be great if magically everything turned around after Barry is sworn in, it is more probable that it will not. it has taken about a year to get where we are now. it will take that long to get back to where we were. construction is down, railroads haul 75% of all building materials. do the math. aggregate business is cut back to a bare minimum in this area. 4 or 5 rock trains a day down to maybe one. intermodal business is off 20% from last year. just that number alone puts about 40 people out of a job in San Antone. new intermodal facility run by contractors, instead of UP employees, more people out of work. the railroads are streamlining there business in an effort to survive and unlike the car manufactures the RR has their stuff together. the UTU and the BLET are also making concessions for whatever reason. maybe BN has a different situation, but i doubt it. make sure your union representatin does things in your best interest. not the case in San Antonio. those guys spend more time with the company than they do with the people they are suppose to represent. God bless to all. |
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"BNSF ( Bigger now still fucked)" I like that.
Hang in there bro. I think things should turn around in a couple more months. I hope any way. Do yall have a furllow board up there that lets you keep your medical? Also do you collect unemployment from the state or rr retirement? If you don't mind me asking, how much? I just want to know so I can prepair better In case I get cutoff. Nope BNSF cut all Furlough boards (Retention Boards) which we didnt have in Ft Worth to begin with so.... I think the UTU had something to do with that. I'm on unemployment through the RRB but they are jacking with me on my pay right now. See I transfered from Montana back to Tejas in Feb. 08. When I did that I gave up all my seniority from up there with about 2 years in. Closed seniority up in Montana which sucks. And Im on the edge of losing my health coverage because of how it is set up in Ft. Worth based on how many starts you have a month which is I think 6 or 7. That damn crew caller keeps calling me for extra work but I won't pick up the phone. I figure after Feburary or mid March I will bump up North and start working again. The unemployment is suppose to pay around six to seven hundered a half kinda like a retention board but union dues and health coverage are not taken out. The retention boards and furlough boards are two different things. The BNSF came up with the retention board idea as a way keep from losing new guys to other railroads or careers when they got furloughed, then having to hire more new guys and start the cycle all over again. They negotiated an agreement with the BLET, and then the UTU had little choice but to follow suit. Now with the economy in the toilet, I'm sure that the company figures guys will have nowhere to go when they get furloughed anyway, so way pay the rentention board money. I am in the Northwest Division which is closed for trainman's seniority as well. No one brings their seniority in, no one takes it out. It has its advantages and disadvantages. Guess it's a good thing that this is where I want to be.
As for your health care, as long you have not already had an interuption, you only need to work ONE day per month to maintain it. But once you have not worked in over 3 months and lose it, then you have to protect that 7 days of service to re-establish it. Try to keep it. No one is going to blame anyone for working one day a month off the furlough board to maintain their health care benefits. I think that railroad unemployment is $61/day, 5 days per week. I hear you. But NP agreements are alittle bit different then Santa Fe. Which is the terminal I work under now. Yeah the whole thing is grease ball shit, the company and unions not wanting to look after their young guys. It was nice up in NP with the retention boards. |
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from what i hear the UTU is putting it in everyones ass How so? the UTU was the grand parader of the remote program ( i think remotes are unsafe and have caused many jobs to be cut off due to the inefficiency of switching operations) now remote jobs are being cut off and the UTU is just standing by watching not trying to drag the UTU through the mud. there are probably a number of locals that serve their membership well. that is not the case in SA. which is the fault of the membership not taking an active part and electing individuals that are willing to serve everyones needs, rather than a select few lots of brother-in-lawing goes on here |
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I hear you. But NP agreements are alittle bit different then Santa Fe. Which is the terminal I work under now. Yeah the whole thing is grease ball shit, the company and unions not wanting to look after their young guys. It was nice up in NP with the retention boards. There are advantages and disadvantages to the different schedules. When I was working out of Temple, I liked that the Santa Fe schedule paid conductors and engineers continual held away at the away from home terminal. I liked the Santa Fe schedule where the conductor was paid the entire earnings of a brakeman after 3 work events. Where I work we have a mix of GN and NP schedules, more GN than NP. The retention board isn't a NP thing, it should be system wide. That agreement was negotiated within the last 5 or 6 years. But it is up to the company's discretion where and when to implement them. It sucks not having much or any seniority, but that's why they call it paying your dues. |
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from what i hear the UTU is putting it in everyones ass How so? the UTU was the grand parader of the remote program ( i think remotes are unsafe and have caused many jobs to be cut off due to the inefficiency of switching operations) now remote jobs are being cut off and the UTU is just standing by watching not trying to drag the UTU through the mud. there are probably a number of locals that serve their membership well. that is not the case in SA. which is the fault of the membership not taking an active part and electing individuals that are willing to serve everyones needs, rather than a select few lots of brother-in-lawing goes on here same here |
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the UTU was the grand parader of the remote program ( i think remotes are unsafe and have caused many jobs to be cut off due to the inefficiency of switching operations) now remote jobs are being cut off and the UTU is just standing by watching Well the BLET has no problems with it's members using remotes when doing so suits their own interests. I think the safety aspect is kind of a wash. Having an engineer is safer in some ways, having a remote is safer in others. The biggest safety problem with remotes is having new, inexperienced guy run them. But that goes for those same guys being forced into the engineers program, too. Given a choice, I'd rather have an engineer, but that's because I can get more work done and quicker. Not necessarily any safer. Jobs are being cut because there is less traffic. How is that the fault of the UTU? What are they supposed to do, demand that jobs be kept on despite there being no work for them to do? It's just the reality of the situation. The only place the UTU or the BLE can really keep jobs on are in pool service that they regulate. But then you'll hear other guys bitching because they are not making their miles. I would not mind either having an engineer and giving up the remote pay or working full crew and losing the short crew pay to keep some of the younger men working. I asked about it and was told that the cBNSF has no plans of doing that. They are in cost cutting mode. |
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the UTU was the grand parader of the remote program ( i think remotes are unsafe and have caused many jobs to be cut off due to the inefficiency of switching operations) now remote jobs are being cut off and the UTU is just standing by watching Well the BLET has no problems with it's members using remotes when doing so suits their own interests. I think the safety aspect is kind of a wash. Having an engineer is safer in some ways, having a remote is safer in others. The biggest safety problem with remotes is having new, inexperienced guy run them. But that goes for those same guys being forced into the engineers program, too. Given a choice, I'd rather have an engineer, but that's because I can get more work done and quicker. Not necessarily any safer. Jobs are being cut because there is less traffic. How is that the fault of the UTU? What are they supposed to do, demand that jobs be kept on despite there being no work for them to do? It's just the reality of the situation. The only place the UTU or the BLE can really keep jobs on are in pool service that they regulate. But then you'll hear other guys bitching because they are not making their miles. I would not mind either having an engineer and giving up the remote pay or working full crew and losing the short crew pay to keep some of the younger men working. I asked about it and was told that the cBNSF has no plans of doing that. They are in cost cutting mode. forced to an engineers program? where does this occur? 
newer inexperienced guys are not the ones wrecking the damn things around here, last major sideswipe.....48 yrs combined service (for,swi1) i can't count the number of times i was called off the eng. x-tra board to work a REMOTE job with the regular crew |
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forced to an engineers program? where does this occur?
newer inexperienced guys are not the ones wrecking the damn things around here, last major sideswipe.....48 yrs combined service (for,swi1) i can't count the number of times i was called off the eng. x-tra board to work a REMOTE job with the regular crew In my area, they did not have enough people bid for the last engineer training program so they literally forced some people straight from the conductor program into the engineer program. Never said that only new guys have accidents with remotes or anything else. Things got and get tore up with engineers on the switch jobs as well. I can list a long string of experienced engineers who have wrecked things far worse than any remote operator could ever dream of. But I stand by the assertion that the biggest safety problem with the remotes is the inexperienced guys. They don't even know how to switch in the first place and then have the onus of trying to learn how to run a remote while they learn how to switch. And yes, sometimes they need an engineer because the remote equipment is not working, available, or the nature of the work requires an engineer, for example having to dogcatch outside of the yard/terminal. Here, sometimes they call an engineer when two inexperienced people catch the same remote job. |
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forced to an engineers program? where does this occur?
newer inexperienced guys are not the ones wrecking the damn things around here, last major sideswipe.....48 yrs combined service (for,swi1) i can't count the number of times i was called off the eng. x-tra board to work a REMOTE job with the regular crew In my area, they did not have enough people bid for the last engineer training program so they literally forced some people straight from the conductor program into the engineer program. Never said that only new guys have accidents with remotes or anything else. Things got and get tore up with engineers on the switch jobs as well. I can list a long string of experienced engineers who have wrecked things far worse than any remote operator could ever dream of. But I stand by the assertion that the biggest safety problem with the remotes is the inexperienced guys. They don't even know how to switch in the first place and then have the onus of trying to learn how to run a remote while they learn how to switch. And yes, sometimes they need an engineer because the remote equipment is not working, available, or the nature of the work requires an engineer, for example having to dogcatch outside of the yard/terminal. Here, sometimes they call an engineer when two inexperienced people catch the same remote job. ok you can stand by your assertion all day long alot of what you say sounds like management. is that the case? if it is you can blow all that smoke up someone else's butt...LOL |
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forced to an engineers program? where does this occur?
newer inexperienced guys are not the ones wrecking the damn things around here, last major sideswipe.....48 yrs combined service (for,swi1) i can't count the number of times i was called off the eng. x-tra board to work a REMOTE job with the regular crew In my area, they did not have enough people bid for the last engineer training program so they literally forced some people straight from the conductor program into the engineer program. Never said that only new guys have accidents with remotes or anything else. Things got and get tore up with engineers on the switch jobs as well. I can list a long string of experienced engineers who have wrecked things far worse than any remote operator could ever dream of. But I stand by the assertion that the biggest safety problem with the remotes is the inexperienced guys. They don't even know how to switch in the first place and then have the onus of trying to learn how to run a remote while they learn how to switch. And yes, sometimes they need an engineer because the remote equipment is not working, available, or the nature of the work requires an engineer, for example having to dogcatch outside of the yard/terminal. Here, sometimes they call an engineer when two inexperienced people catch the same remote job. You can't blame the young guys. It's the company throwing them out there untrained or under trained. |
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forced to an engineers program? where does this occur?
newer inexperienced guys are not the ones wrecking the damn things around here, last major sideswipe.....48 yrs combined service (for,swi1) i can't count the number of times i was called off the eng. x-tra board to work a REMOTE job with the regular crew In my area, they did not have enough people bid for the last engineer training program so they literally forced some people straight from the conductor program into the engineer program. Never said that only new guys have accidents with remotes or anything else. Things got and get tore up with engineers on the switch jobs as well. I can list a long string of experienced engineers who have wrecked things far worse than any remote operator could ever dream of. But I stand by the assertion that the biggest safety problem with the remotes is the inexperienced guys. They don't even know how to switch in the first place and then have the onus of trying to learn how to run a remote while they learn how to switch. And yes, sometimes they need an engineer because the remote equipment is not working, available, or the nature of the work requires an engineer, for example having to dogcatch outside of the yard/terminal. Here, sometimes they call an engineer when two inexperienced people catch the same remote job. ok you can stand by your assertion all day long alot of what you say sounds like management. is that the case? if it is you can blow all that smoke up someone else's butt...LOL +1 |
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forced to an engineers program? where does this occur?
newer inexperienced guys are not the ones wrecking the damn things around here, last major sideswipe.....48 yrs combined service (for,swi1) i can't count the number of times i was called off the eng. x-tra board to work a REMOTE job with the regular crew In my area, they did not have enough people bid for the last engineer training program so they literally forced some people straight from the conductor program into the engineer program. Never said that only new guys have accidents with remotes or anything else. Things got and get tore up with engineers on the switch jobs as well. I can list a long string of experienced engineers who have wrecked things far worse than any remote operator could ever dream of. But I stand by the assertion that the biggest safety problem with the remotes is the inexperienced guys. They don't even know how to switch in the first place and then have the onus of trying to learn how to run a remote while they learn how to switch. And yes, sometimes they need an engineer because the remote equipment is not working, available, or the nature of the work requires an engineer, for example having to dogcatch outside of the yard/terminal. Here, sometimes they call an engineer when two inexperienced people catch the same remote job. You can't blame the young guys. It's the company throwing them out there untrained or under trained. this |
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ok you can stand by your assertion all day long alot of what you say sounds like management. is that the case? if it is you can blow all that smoke up someone else's butt...LOL No that's not the case. I'm currently working as a foreman on a switch job. And yes, it's remote. Sad to hear that you think that anyone who looks at the situation objectively must be in management. Sounds rather..... ignorant. |
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ok you can stand by your assertion all day long alot of what you say sounds like management. is that the case? if it is you can blow all that smoke up someone else's butt...LOL No that's not the case. I'm currently working as a foreman on a switch job. And yes, it's remote. Sad to hear that you think that anyone who looks at the situation objectively must be in management. Sounds rather..... ignorant. ignorant... 
i promise you that is not the case. throwing down the gauntlet in less than a face to face encounter is well....cowardly. i have stated nothing but fact. i would propose that the situations in either case are very different and yet the same. good luck to you. ....and as the railroads strive for PTC and one person crews i suggest you put that green ( or whatever color) box down and learn how to run an engine from inside the cab. furthermore, as the railroads strive for more cost cutting measures.....contract labor for yard jobs. don't shake your head, it's coming. the UTU and the BLEt don't have the railroads by the nads like the UAW has the auto makers and the legislators. edit: ...and why is someone from WA, USA trolling the TX threads |
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ok you can stand by your assertion all day long alot of what you say sounds like management. is that the case? if it is you can blow all that smoke up someone else's butt...LOL No that's not the case. I'm currently working as a foreman on a switch job. And yes, it's remote. Sad to hear that you think that anyone who looks at the situation objectively must be in management. Sounds rather..... ignorant. ignorant... 
i promise you that is not the case. throwing down the gauntlet in less than a face to face encounter is well....cowardly. i have stated nothing but fact. i would propose that the situations in either case are very different and yet the same. good luck to you. ....and as the railroads strive for PTC and one person crews i suggest you put that green ( or whatever color) box down and learn how to run an engine from inside the cab. furthermore, as the railroads strive for more cost cutting measures.....contract labor for yard jobs. don't shake your head, it's coming. the UTU and the BLEt don't have the railroads by the nads like the UAW has the auto makers and the legislators. edit: ...and why is someone from WA, USA trolling the TX threads You got me, I think he was from Texas at one point cause he said something about Temple, Texas |
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ok you can stand by your assertion all day long alot of what you say sounds like management. is that the case? if it is you can blow all that smoke up someone else's butt...LOL No that's not the case. I'm currently working as a foreman on a switch job. And yes, it's remote. Sad to hear that you think that anyone who looks at the situation objectively must be in management. Sounds rather..... ignorant. ignorant...
i promise you that is not the case. throwing down the gauntlet in less than a face to face encounter is well....cowardly. i have stated nothing but fact. i would propose that the situations in either case are very different and yet the same. good luck to you. ....and as the railroads strive for PTC and one person crews i suggest you put that green ( or whatever color) box down and learn how to run an engine from inside the cab. furthermore, as the railroads strive for more cost cutting measures.....contract labor for yard jobs. don't shake your head, it's coming. the UTU and the BLEt don't have the railroads by the nads like the UAW has the auto makers and the legislators. edit: ...and why is someone from WA, USA trolling the TX threads Hey, if you're going to act argumentitive and, well, ignorant, I'll just say as much. You assume that anyone who looks at the situation objectively and dispassionately must be in management. How is that not ignorant? They way you talk, you sound like you vote the union line and are an Obama supporter. You also sound like a typical engineer who is offended because he thinks his job was stolen, even though his own craft has adopted manpower saving technologies over the years. Is that the case? See how that works? Thanks for the tips. If I were just starting out I would give the engineers program some serious consideration. No doubt that it's the safer bet. But as it is, with my seniority, I believe that I'll get to retirement for sure as a switchman and much more than likely as a conductor. The work isn't going to disappear altogether. And for all we know, everyone is going to be dovetailed into one giant craft. Who knows. As to why I'm in the Texas forum? Well I periodically search for railroad threads and this one popped up. I was just offering some solid information to a BNSF brother. |
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ok you can stand by your assertion all day long alot of what you say sounds like management. is that the case? if it is you can blow all that smoke up someone else's butt...LOL No that's not the case. I'm currently working as a foreman on a switch job. And yes, it's remote. Sad to hear that you think that anyone who looks at the situation objectively must be in management. Sounds rather..... ignorant. ignorant...
i promise you that is not the case. throwing down the gauntlet in less than a face to face encounter is well....cowardly. i have stated nothing but fact. i would propose that the situations in either case are very different and yet the same. good luck to you. ....and as the railroads strive for PTC and one person crews i suggest you put that green ( or whatever color) box down and learn how to run an engine from inside the cab. furthermore, as the railroads strive for more cost cutting measures.....contract labor for yard jobs. don't shake your head, it's coming. the UTU and the BLEt don't have the railroads by the nads like the UAW has the auto makers and the legislators. edit: ...and why is someone from WA, USA trolling the TX threads Hey, if you're going to act argumentitive and, well, ignorant, I'll just say as much. You assume that anyone who looks at the situation objectively and dispassionately must be in management. How is that not ignorant? They way you talk, you sound like you vote the union line and are an Obama supporter. You also sound like a typical engineer who is offended because he thinks his job was stolen, even though his own craft has adopted manpower saving technologies over the years. Is that the case? See how that works? Thanks for the tips. If I were just starting out I would give the engineers program some serious consideration. No doubt that it's the safer bet. But as it is, with my seniority, I believe that I'll get to retirement for sure as a switchman and much more than likely as a conductor. The work isn't going to disappear altogether. And for all we know, everyone is going to be dovetailed into one giant craft. Who knows. As to why I'm in the Texas forum? Well I periodically search for railroad threads and this one popped up. I was just offering some solid information to a BNSF brother. first of all i am certainly not your BNSF bro. (read the whole thread and you could have figured that out) second, don't vote the union line. i am as anti-union as it gets and definetly not a Barry supporter. why the hell would i be on arfcom and support Obama. personally i could give a damn about the UTU or the BLEt they sold out years ago, makes for a good tax write off though. My job is well protected, unlike yours. I am a qualified engineer and qualified RCO, so it seems to me if anyone here is ignorant it is you for not diversifying your qualifications enough to hold a job no matter what the circumstances. Anyway, it has been interesting conversing with you on the subject(s). I wish you happiness and health in the new year and by all means be safe. Death rolls from all directions on the railroad.   
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first of all i am certainly not your BNSF bro. (read the whole thread and you could have figured that out) second, don't vote the union line. i am as anti-union as it gets and definetly not a Barry supporter. why the hell would i be on arfcom and support Obama. Speaking of reading the whole thread, who did I first respond to? The UP guy or the BNSF guy? 
And if I can be management, you can be an Obama supporter. If you got out of the Texas forum once in while, perhaps you would realize that there are indeed Obama supporters here. And no, I'm not one of them. personally i could give a damn about the UTU or the BLEt they sold out years ago, makes for a good tax write off though. Yeah, I got that feeling when you starting bagging on the UTU. Personally, I wish we could all get on the same page. Seems to be too many egos and too much pride for that, though. My job is well protected, unlike yours. I am a qualified engineer and qualified RCO, so it seems to me if anyone here is ignorant it is you for not diversifying your qualifications enough to hold a job no matter what the circumstances. Not a switch engineer left in the entire terminal I work at. Lots of switchmen, though. You have a scope agreement, we have a guaranteed crew size agreement. If one is subject to negotiation, then so is the other. There will always be jobs that can't run with just 1 man. And I'd hate to be that guy out there all by himself for 10-12 hours anyhow. You take your chances, I'll take mine. Sound fair enough? Anyway, it has been interesting conversing with you on the subject(s). I wish you happiness and health in the new year and by all means be safe. Death rolls from all directions on the railroad. And the same to you. 
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What is it with railroaders always acting like they know everything going on at the railroad And if you don't agree with them then your stupid? Much less a bunch of guys with less than 5 years seniority.
I make a point to stay out of most rr threads because they always turn in to this. I thought this thread would be just folks trying to help each other out and maybe dispel some rumors. I guess I was wrong. 
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I hear you. But NP agreements are alittle bit different then Santa Fe. Which is the terminal I work under now. Yeah the whole thing is grease ball shit, the company and unions not wanting to look after their young guys. It was nice up in NP with the retention boards. There are advantages and disadvantages to the different schedules. When I was working out of Temple, I liked that the Santa Fe schedule paid conductors and engineers continual held away at the away from home terminal. I liked the Santa Fe schedule where the conductor was paid the entire earnings of a brakeman after 3 work events. Where I work we have a mix of GN and NP schedules, more GN than NP. The retention board isn't a NP thing, it should be system wide. That agreement was negotiated within the last 5 or 6 years. But it is up to the company's discretion where and when to implement them. It sucks not having much or any seniority, but that's why they call it paying your dues. Yeah I know the difference. It was 9 times out of 10 former BN terminals that only had rentention boards. I thank you for the help man but I think you may have made an enemy in the process. We got to help each other out there guys cause the companies are always looking for something. |
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I hear you. But NP agreements are alittle bit different then Santa Fe. Which is the terminal I work under now. Yeah the whole thing is grease ball shit, the company and unions not wanting to look after their young guys. It was nice up in NP with the retention boards. There are advantages and disadvantages to the different schedules. When I was working out of Temple, I liked that the Santa Fe schedule paid conductors and engineers continual held away at the away from home terminal. I liked the Santa Fe schedule where the conductor was paid the entire earnings of a brakeman after 3 work events. Where I work we have a mix of GN and NP schedules, more GN than NP. The retention board isn't a NP thing, it should be system wide. That agreement was negotiated within the last 5 or 6 years. But it is up to the company's discretion where and when to implement them. It sucks not having much or any seniority, but that's why they call it paying your dues. Yeah I know the difference. It was 9 times out of 10 former BN terminals that only had rentention boards. I thank you for the help man but I think you may have made an enemy in the process. We got to help each other out there guys cause the companies are always looking for something. dude, i have no enemies. unless you threaten my family or the country in which i have the honor to live, or myself. if either one of us were that thin skinned to consider the other an enemy i don't think we could or would work for any railroad. besides butting heads on the issues is good fun once in awhile. just ask my wife. 
all that being said here is some more useless caca to ponder. listen, it is not the companies duty to look after the younger employees. that is the job of your union representaion. the company is responsible to the share holders and that is it. it is a difficult time for all, like i said there are 207 people cutoff in San Antonio with more to come. i pray daily for these guys and their families. i count my blessings every day that i can still hold a job. speaking of that, called for 0645. funny thing, only four trains on duty north out of SA and still can't get one 175 miles. SSDD High Ball |