Only fair that we should give the trainmen an opportunity to vent. I'm not sure if it's safe to allow the "BigC" to post his thoughts though as I'm sure he has a multitude of suggestions.
Boy, you're really testing my memory JG cause it's been years since we've had any good engineers where I work!
I mainly don't like newbies from choo choo U that feel as if they're the smartest guy they know when in fact what they don't know about railroading would fill up your hard drive!
But here's a few anyhow:
Don't use the high beam and ring the bell continuously in the yard.
Don't move the engine without a signal. This is a bad habit some people fall into. Don't assume!
Don't whine about the weather or the cab heater. If it's broke, report it and have someone check it out but don't cry about it all night. The yard heater doesn't work either. We don't have 300 mile districts so it's not like you're on the loco for hours on end.
I could go on for hours with a laundry list but basically I prefer engineers that work with me rather than against.
Best kept secret on the railroad is that when we work together, this job is pretty easy and sometimes fun. Working with duds makes for a long night.