home time in North Platte

I'm in the process of hiring on with UP, and I'm concerned about the time away from home. Now I'm in the works with the train crew, with no previouse experience with the RR. My goal is to be a conductor or engineer. So What kind of away time am I looking at if I become a conductor or engineer, I already have a family and all so I want to know how this will affect them.

I cant answer yer question but hey maybe Ill run into ya up there.I am hireing on into the Diesel shop in North Platte, going through background now, spoke with the rail police tonight.Good luck to ya.

North Platte is a meatgrinder that will chew up your home time if you work the extra boards. 40 hour trips are not uncommon, then home for 10 or 12, back out again. Some of the away terminals up there are notorious for holding guys away from home. Upside is the yard jobs go pretty low, but the pay isnt nearly as good and the yard is not a popular place to work for several reasons. After a year or two you might be able to hold a pool, sometimes those go lower than that and it means a little more time at home (not much, but it counts) or jump onto a switch foreman job with the RC trim crews which improves the pay in the yard some. Either way the turnover there is higher than usual and the demands of traffic make it one of the safer terminals to hire out at in terms of being laid off and building seniority. Finally, dont go there thinking you will be able to transfer out (ever), it just doesnt happen and a lot of guys make that mistake then realize they are trapped once it is too late. The only way out of North Platte is to quit or retire; great if you plan on staying there, not so great if you dont.

This is what I am scared of. I am from Nebraska and have no desire to live in North Platte. But I have an opportunity on November 27th for a hiring session for Train Crew. Another guy told me on here that I would have a chance to transfer out possibly in a matter of months to Council Bluffs or Marysville which I would prefer. I am going to the hiring session for sure because I dont want to pass this opportunity up but I am worried I will be stuck in North Platte. BigDaddy was the one that said it was a possibility for me to transfer out after training....can anyone else back this up?

I work in the seniority district to the east of North Platte and i can verify for you that Co Bluffs is a place that you could work, and there is RCO which in des moines is a low seniority job, low paying job.

I can tell you from looking at the board that council bluffs RCO Extra board is VERY low seniority nobody has over 1 year in.

I'm not sure which board the conductors Extra board is...

The year and a half I worked in that SU I only saw one guy get a transfer out and he had to go really high up the ladder in both the union and the company to make it happen. I am sure guys do get out of North Platte from time to time if business is down and other parts of the RR are screaming for help, but it is not something they will give you the opportunity to do, you will have to make it happen.

You will not get out of North Platte. The job is good, the town sucks! I went there and I quit there. I'm never going back to that sewer hole!

Moved to the Employment Forum

My wife and I like it there. Its a much bigger town than we live now in NH. We have been there several times. We wanted to make sure we liked it there before I applied for a job there. I wonder how many people take jobs and move for the railroad? Then they find out they dont like the area they are living.

I agree most people just want the job, kinda get a foot in the door.We came here a couple times to before I got hired to make sure we liked.I can say NP aint for everyone , but its a pretty good small town. And plenty of railroad jobs to be had as well.

Both the hiring sessions I have been to they tell you no transfers for 2 years. I guess some people think they can beat the system.

we have perm transfers from n platte here in kc, but only because they were furloughed up there.

jct61765 wrote:Both the hiring sessions I have been to they tell you no transfers for 2 years. I guess some people think they can beat the system.

i think they talking about craft transfers

rwallace2fan1 wrote: we have perm transfers from n platte here in kc, but only because they were furloughed up there.

there have been several bulletins for borrow outs and permanant transfers out of north platte this year.
the latest borrow outs will go to the northwest, and transfers will go south.
there are still alot of people on the aw board and i think they are trying to get them off and back to work.
i don't think they have hired many for train service so far this year, i don't know about other crafts. maybe mille-ryan can tell us if they are hiring in the diesel shop.