Stuck at a crossroads

I'll be graduating soon with a supply chain degree. I've been wanting to work in the railroad for a long, long time. I currently volunteer at a small shortline that runs a few cars a week as both MOW and train service, but it's only been about a year or so.

The original plan was to start out in train service and work my way up into management that way so I could gain the experience I needed to be successful. Unfortunately with the pandemic, T&E opportunities have dried up. There are a few places hiring right now but I can't hire on because I'm not in a position to do so with classes. Come graduation, there probably won't be anything.

I do have the opportunity to start with a major RR as a management trainee and eventually become a TM after training, but I can't find any sort of information as to what the conditions are like for TMs nowadays. Most of the threads I've found across a lot of the larger forums are 10+ years old and are almost exclusively doom and gloom for those TMs who are hired off the street.

I don't think I have much of an option except to take this offer. My current job doesn't pay me nearly enough for the job I do (less than $10/hr in a highly dangerous position AND training newbies), I cannot renew my lease if I am not a student, and there aren't many well-paying positions available due to the sorry state of the economy.

What should a new TM know starting out? Thanks to my crew stuff I have some of the general Conductor duties down (switching, etc.), but I'm not sure what else I should know before I accept this. Or should I even bother?

Honestly, I'd go with that trainee program if you don't have ties keeping you in one place.

The short line experience has taught you the basics, and while having worked in a front line position is always valuable, it's not going to buy you credibility with T&E employees later. You'll always be a suit.

That experience is also not going to benefit you nearly as much over your career as getting the trainee rotation thru different HQ departments plus the professional networking opportunities.

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I'm going to be brutally honest. You must be a pretty good actor; if even a whiff of what you put in your post came through in an interview, most hiring managers would deep-six your resume. You believe a management training program is essentially the least desirable option in the world, next to working at 7-11? You're despondent because the railroad has put you in a position where you actually have to make a decision or "...should I even bother?" Poor you!

ATM and TM positions can be brutal - the classic no-win, front line job where s*** rolls down both union hills and management hills right into your lap. They are also among the best "foundation" jobs from which to build a railroad ops career. In short, they are what you make of them.

I say that you will really have to run the gauntlet in the management trainee program. It is true that you’ll get all the crap from both sides. It’s a no win situation, unless you come to someone’s attention and get promoted.

If you studied logistics, I would suggest something other than the railroad, such as marine shipping, warehousing, and trucking. The other drawback to the railroad is that if you start as a trainman, and progress to conductor, engineer, or even yardmaster, you still have a gauntlet to run. Every day you have some manager who has the job of testing you. I’ve seen many hard working guys who were very careful get fired. Just the wrong mistake can kill your career.

Looks elsewhere.

Cowford wrote: ↑Sun Feb 07, 2021 5:48 pm I'm going to be brutally honest. You must be a pretty good actor; if even a whiff of what you put in your post came through in an interview, most hiring managers would deep-six your resume. You believe a management training program is essentially the least desirable option in the world, next to working at 7-11? You're despondent because the railroad has put you in a position where you actually have to make a decision or "...should I even bother?" Poor you!

ATM and TM positions can be brutal - the classic no-win, front line job where s*** rolls down both union hills and management hills right into your lap. They are also among the best "foundation" jobs from which to build a railroad ops career. In short, they are what you make of them.

Actor? Hardly. I was excited when I was offered the interview and excited when I was offered the position. I achieved a goal I had wanted for years and it showed in the interview.

Nowhere, and I mean nowhere, did I indicate that an MTP is the “least desirable option”. I know that MTs are pretty much despised but it’s still far better than my current position where I get crap from both sides and I’m paid nowhere near where I should be. My point simply was that, while I am excited to be offered a position at all in this economy, is the MTP worth it, or should I gamble and wait until I can earn my stripes as crew if any positions are even available when I graduate? Which is more valuable for the experience in operations? It’s no secret that there are both current and former railroad employees on this board who know a heck of a lot more about how things work than I do, and I sought out their knowledge and opinions on how to handle this. They’ve been through it. I haven’t. I wanted to get an idea of what awaited me before I made a decision. Which, by the way, I did make and I accepted the offer.

If that wasn’t clear in the first post then I apologize for not making it clear. And thank you for the advice in the second part of your reply.

Engineer Spike wrote:I say that you will really have to run the gauntlet in the management trainee program. It is true that you’ll get all the crap from both sides. It’s a no win situation, unless you come to someone’s attention and get promoted.

If you studied logistics, I would suggest something other than the railroad, such as marine shipping, warehousing, and trucking. The other drawback to the railroad is that if you start as a trainman, and progress to conductor, engineer, or even yardmaster, you still have a gauntlet to run. Every day you have some manager who has the job of testing you. I’ve seen many hard working guys who were very careful get fired. Just the wrong mistake can kill your career.

Looks elsewhere.

I appreciate the input. Thank you.

Well, congratulations on accepting the position. I'm glad that you're enthusiastic, about it. The "I don't think I have much of an option..." and "should I even bother" comments communicated a different vibe, at least to me.

Good luck!