Article by Scott Clay

Seniority rights: Every position on the railroad has a seniority roster of its own, and works on a "bid and bump system." When I started with Union Pacific in October of 2000, I received my Trackman rights (your starting date is your seniority date as a Trackman). After that, it is up to you to bid on open positions to establish rights on a particular job. The day you start you are automatically given "Trackman" rights, (i.e.; laborer, grunt, paid slave or whatever). Then you have "Machine Operator Common," which is mostly off-track machinery such as backhoes, bulldozers, end-loaders, boom trucks and semis also fall into this category, as well as a couple of on-track machines including Burro cranes. Then there's "Machine Operator A, B, or C." Class A includes Mk IV, and Jackson 6700 tampers. Class B covers Mk III tampers, the TR10 tie inserter, ballast regulator, backup tampers, on track brush cutters and so on. There really aren't that many machines covered by Class C except for tie cranes.

Many people try to establish Class A rights first, as you automatically receive Class B and C rights with it. Same goes for Foreman and Assistant Foreman--they can be established separately, but if you establish Foreman's rights first, AF comes automatically. Incidentally, this is the route I took, as I've never held an AF position. I currently hold everything except Class A, B, or C machine rights. I was lucky, as I was able to establish all my rights in a little more than a year-- In October 2000 I was Trackman, by May 2001 I established Common rights, then Foreman by December 2001.

Within 14 months of starting with UP I had established most of the available rights. It is sometimes possible to get rights ahead of senior employees. Certain criteria will qualify you ahead of someone else. In my case I had a Class A Commercial Drivers License (CDL). I was awarded a position ahead of an employee who was senior to me because they did not have a CDL, and the job in question required one. This definitely worked in my favor as I continued working through that winter and the other employee was at home on furlough. Other factors can figure in as well. Some of the older employees have never established Foreman's rights, and there are even 20-plus year employees who don't hold Common rights. I've heard of guys who work their entire career as a Trackman! It all depends on what you're happy doing.

If you are displaced from a position due to abolishment, or being "bumped" by another employee, then you have the right to displace an employee who is junior to you. Basically with this system, "stuff rolls down hill." One employee gets bumped, then bumps another, and so on until it gets to the point where an employee gets bumped and has nowhere to go but home. I don't particularly like displacing another employee (only had to do this once), nor do I like getting displaced (four times), but I understand that this is how the game is played. Some people hold grudges over this, and it can be frustrating, but that's just the way it is.

System rights is an entirely different ballgame. I currently don't hold any system rights--these are completely separate from section rights. In this regard, I have several people who are junior to me who hold system rights ahead of me. There are some guys who spend their entire career on system gangs. There are many incentives that make people go this route, such as paid expenses, mileage and such. Many of them work "compressed halves," wherein you work eight 10-hour days, then receive 7 straight days off. This works out great if you're working far from home as it gives you enough time to travel home, have some quality time there, then get back to the work site. Some gangs have it set up where they work the first eight days of the half, then take off the remaining seven, or vice versa. Some gangs work four 10's then take 3 days. If ever I take a system job, I will definitely try to get on a gang that works compressed halves. Some gangs have what are called "step off" rights, where if you are working on a system gang in a certain area and they are getting ready to move to another area and that location is 500 or more miles from the current one, then the employee has the right to "step off" and then bump in on another system gang, or a section gang in their home territory. System rights are hard to figure out in some regards due to differing union agreements in different areas. Case in point, the former Missouri Pacific territory has a whole different union agreement, and there are many places someone from another area cannot work. The old MoPac may well have been folded into UP years ago, but it is still separate in many ways. The system gangs are one area where I need to do some research so I can figure out how they work. This year I may actually try the system thing and see how it works. My cousin, who works system almost exclusively, has told me that the best money is made on the system, and he has worked in every state that UP serves! This appeals to me as I like to work in different areas and meet new people, and different areas have different working conditions.

As you can see there are many different options out there for an MoW employee on the UP. You can stay at a headquartered location, or you can travel the system and experience many different areas and working conditions. There are many different positions to choose from, as well as a variety of machinery that you can learn how to operate. Basically, if you get bored on this job it's your own fault.

Next time I will be discussing different conditions, weather and otherwise, that we face in carrying out our jobs. Until then, work safe.

About the Author
Scott Clay, 34, was born and raised in Oxnard, CA, and currently resides in Illinois with his wife Anne Marie. He is employed by Union Pacific on the Chicago service unit as a track foreman, and has been with the railroad since 2000. His interest in trains started after a gift of model railroad equipment at age 7, and has since grown from there. Scott Clay is also the moderator of our Union Pacific forum. The views contained in Track and Time belong solely to the author, and do not represent the views of the Union Pacific Railroad.