Asst. Conductor

Hmm interesting stuff about the turnover stuff. Where I work there must be 8 hours inbetween shifts, although many people don't abide by that (including me) and we hear it from HR when the time cards are printed out.

Clemuel... assuming you are working a yard job then you head out on the road (ex. power swap) do you earn an extra day's worth of pay or is it just straight OT?

It's absolutely amazing how OT works on the RR. You can really make a killing if you really have a lot of free time on your hands and are single!

Kushy,

If you are working in yard service and then you are called to operate a train on the road you would receive one day's pay at straight time.

This is not actually "overtime" but a punitive payment the Carrier must make for violating their agreement with you which says you will only work in one class of service.

There was a time when such payments were made at the overtime rate of time and one-half, but this was lost when an arbitrator ruled that "there will be no overtime paid on overtime".

Conductors get four hours' pay for such violation of their contract.

Yes, a single guy, or a guy who doesn't like his family can make a good dollar working day and night. The problem, of course is taxes. In addition to the usual State and Federal Income tax, railroad workers pay Railroad Retirement Tax instead of Social Security Tax, which is nearly $10,000 per year.

So all that extra earnings is cut down substantially by taxes, especially for the single guy. Figure on taking home about 42% - 65% of your first paycheck, buddy.

CLemuel

You're "right on the money" Clemuel.
As of 08-19-05:
Federal: $7,600.00
RRB Tier 1: $3,300.00
RRB Tier 2: $2,300.00
RRB Tier 1 MED: $760.00
Illinois State Tax: $1,600.00
Throw in another $1,800.00 in "misc." deductions, union dues, health, etc.
Grand total of roughly $17,000+/- to date.

Railroad retirement is a good pension. It should be, considering what we're forced to cough-up!

So... you are on your forth day of work and you are on the "extra" list, and your assignment is to switch power on the Greenport Scoot. Since it's a yard job but requires you going on the road (Richmond Hill>KO) you basically get paid 5 days while only having to work 4 days, correct?

Kushy,

Nothing's completely simple. If you are switching your own train, it is not a violation of the agreement.

So, contrary to what many crew members argue, you, a road crew, can be ordered to make up your own train or dispose of your own equipment. This means a yardmaster can order you to bring your train into the yard, place a car here, a car there, drop the hack on The Stink and put your engine on the Big Middle and he is not violating the agreement. You are switching your own train.

Even if a yard crew is on duty, a road crew can be ordered to handle its own train without a penalty.

However, if he told you to "leave your train on three, step over to five, pull it out and put a car to one and the rest back to five, then pin ahead (go home)," he would be violating the agreement because drilled equipment that you did not operate on the road.

These complexities get shuffled around from time to time and once in awhile a crew is paid when they should not be which just serves to further confuse the workforce.

But any yardmaster or experienced crew member knows exactly what he can and can't do without a penalty.

In the case you describe, the yardmaster or enginehouse foreman should send a CE -"change engine" engineer, who would not get a penalty for that kind of work. Of course if his CE was busy waxing the yardmaster's car [ -- oops -- couldn't resist -- ] and he had to send a yard crew or a hostler, they would receive the penalty payment.

Now if you "comingled" diesel and electric equipment -- handled a DE and then a DM... that would be another story, and of course, another day's pay.

Clem

P.S. -- Look there real hard at Greenwood's numbers. That's one heck of a tax bill. In New York, the state tax would be about $5600. That extra day's pay at straight time that you missed your kid's softball game to work woun't even buy you a nice dinner after taxes.

Update:

The LIRR called me back and I'm going in for the second panel interview. The HR manager made sure to remind me to memorize the definitions and signals in the sample packet word for word, no substituting words and no adding or subtracting words. I've got my work cut out for me, but all it is, is dedicating yourself and putting the effort forth. I've come this far, I should be able to continue making progress. The only thing that's throwing me off a little bit is that some of the rules in GCOR are worded differently. Most of them mean the same thing, but with the different wording it kinda throws you off a little bit lol.

I'm curious how Myla did, haven't seen a post from her since she started this topic.

A little less than half of those selected lose interest and never show again...

Clem

I never realized how much of a high turn over rate railroads have. I guess the LIRR makes it so challenging to get in as a way to filter out people who will work for a few months and then think "eh I don't want to do this anymore.

The RR I work for is actually pretty easy to get into....a short line who desperately needs people. There were 10 hires along with me, and training was completed in May. Today I'm one of 2 or 3 people left from my group. Those who left didn't leave because they got better offers at other railroads, they left because they couldn't adjust to life on the railroad. I guess a lot of people don't quite realize all the sacrafices the life of a railroader requires. Not to mention that it's the only job that I can think of that hands you a HUGE book of rules and requires you to know them all...and that's not counting the employee and books, hazmat (if you work with freight), signals, trouble shooting, and all the other stuff.

RPM
Although it is a great advantage to you to be coming from another railroad it seems to be a double edged sword.
when they say verbatim they want verbatim!!
the definitions do not have to make sense.
just be able to recite them word for word and you will do fine
same for the signals and indications.
as for working 4 trains per day.... not for a while bud. You will start out working different jobs and hours every day for at least a year and on the ticket collectors jobs they have found a way for you to cram up to 10 trains in an 8 hour shift!
Just hang tight and remember word for word....do not try to apply logic or reason.
one last thing SAFETY SAFETY SAFETY at your next interview stress the importance of your own safety and the safety of the passengers

RPM2Night wrote:The HR manager made sure to remind me to memorize the definitions and signals in the sample packet word for word.

RPM, how many definitions and signals are in the sample packet?
how much time were you given to memorize them?

As usual, UTU Brother is right on the money. Safety, and with it, Customer Service should taint your interview. You follow instructions well and aren't the creative type.

And MEMORIZE those definations and signals.

Good luck.

And should you find yourself joing the chorus of those who are always bitching about the job, remember that you wanted to be here...

Once you qualify, if you've kept your nose clean, you can have any job you want on this Railroad. It may just take time.

Clem

Working here, I've dealt with plenty of people who 1) bitch and complain, and 2) act like they know everything there is about railroading, and intend on reinventing the wheel. I already know not to act like that...but being around these clowns is just another reminder lol.

I sometimes find myself among the pissing and moaners, then and just think about my old job and how much better the RR is and I am happy again.
RPM, I did not read evey post in this thread so my apologies if some one mentioned this, but the best way to study is to make flash cards out of index cards for all the signals and defs. Also, don't just study verbally, make sure you write out the answers as well so you get use to writing them. People usually think faster then they write and end up omitting words
Study hard, GOOD LUCK !!

Hey Blue, what did you used to do before working for the railroad? I worked in retail for 6 years (3.5 years at Home Depot Expo, and before that 2.5 years at Loews Theaters). There's no way I'd go back, full time atleast, after having some railroad experience under my belt. Now if I get accepted into training I'll probably return to Expo part time for the duration of the training period, so I can have some cash coming in, but then once training is over I'll either drop down to one day or maybe even quit Expo all together.

As for studying I have been writing the signals and definitions out on paper making notes of what I write down wrong. I noticed that in the packet before the signals section it says that students at this point aren't responsible for the "notes", just for the signals and their definitions. I wonder if this is another way to filter out people, testing to see if they read instructions and follow them...cause if you don't read that part, you might just assume that you'll need to memorize the "notes" as well. Tricky!

Notes do not come in until you qualify.
there are only a few "key" notes and once you are here you will find out which ones count.