Is it possible for older workers to find railroad jobs?

Question

Do the railroad companies hire older workers? I'm 46 and would like to change careers and become an engineer or operations supervisor?

Answer 1

Yes.

They hire any age. And older people do well. They do not call in sick and appreciate the job. They have expreience. Go for it

Answer 2

What the others have said is true. I was offered a job with UP but had to turn it down. You are on call 24/7 which I could handle but they wanted me to be willing to move anywhere within an area from Nevada to No. Cal to So. Cal. My wife said no.

That's probably the biggest sticking point for older guys like us who have established lives.

Answer 3

well blow me down SON, your the perfect age. I trained a guy who was 55 and was a brick layer most of his life. I took me one day to train him, smartest guy i have come across to date. I have trained some guys out of high school that take weeks to train.

Your the perfect age, if your health is perfect, you can walk for miles at a time or have had military (not really a must, but it helps) or if you been in any trade most of your life your the guy.

most places are going to work you as a conductor for a year or more before they make you a engineer. Most class 1 railroads are 24 hour call 7 days a week 365 days a year. Regional railroads either do on call or schedule. Shortlines do mostly schedules.

Tell me what state you live in and let me know if I can assist you any farther.

Just rmember though RAIN, SLEET, SNOW, SUN, HAIL, the railroad keeps movin....

Shawn

Answer 4

The answer to your question is yes.

Though one would think otherwise, given the rigors of the service, that older folk may seem a liability.  Further, assuming one would retire at age 65, you'd think the carriers would invest more in the young, having a trained and qualified employee for a longer period of time.

But, at least in my neck of the woods on the UP, they are in fact opting for more mature personnel.  The reason is simple enough.  When speaking of the physical requirements younger people can handle things better.  But, today's railroading is a complex business, requiring acceptance of greater responsibility as well as higher education, including life experience, better decision making capability as well as other attributes found more frequently in the later thirty and early forty somethings.  This is especially true when they are weighing an individual's suitability for handling the position of a locomotive engineer, which will be the final destination for anyone hiring out as a conductor trainee.  Here, maturity goes a long way.

No-one hires out in engine service any longer, as in the past.  These positions are filled from the rank and file found in other classes of service.  

Hopefully, you're not qualified for an operations supervisor.  Here, having no qualms about pulling the wings off insects or torturing puppies goes a long way for employment in a supervisory capacity, again, as far as the Union Pacific is concerned.

So, I'd say give it a shot.  You've nothing to lose, as long as you have a very strong marriage.  The toll taken here is a divorce rate three times the national average of 50 / 50.

Good luck.........