LIRR Mentors?

Some years ago, one of my regular conductors at the time had a hat pin shaped like a locomotive, with the word "Mentor." What does an LIRR mentor do? Train new hirees? Is it an official position, or is every veteran a mentor?

Your last question is the answer. They were asked to do this by the training dept. Engineers also had mentors. It did not go over well with the BLE at the time. It was a logical way to pass on the traditions and then-protocols (I hate the word-but its true) of "the way its done". All destroyed now, I presume.

The Railroad asked certain Conductors that had a good work ethic, and had good records, if they would be willing to mentor new employees.
If they accepted, the new employee would be assigned to the job the Conductor was on, as an extra person on the train crew.
The program did not last very long, couple of years or so.
In my opinion it was an excellent program, and produced good employees, since they learned from the best.
On a side note, whenever the RR had a need to call out an extra crew for certain events that would bring media attention, such as the first electric train out of Ronkonkoma, or the crew that covered the colin furgeson train the following night, it was supposed to be done in seniority order.
However, a supervisor would consult the crew dispatchers and suggest a list of do not calls, to avoid possible negative media attention.

No new hires = no more mentors

The Mentor Program was the brain child of the Railroad's first female Superintendent. Having come up through the ranks in train service, she saw a huge shift in hiring demographics. Railroaders were retiring in record numbers, and as Doc stated, there were fewer veterans to pass down the "Institutional Knowledge and Culture" to the new hires.

A huge part of successful operation is based on tradition and unwritten knowledge. She recognized this, and worked very hard to organize a mentor program that didn't miff the Training and Human Resources Departments.

The program generally worked well. A list of possible mentors was constructed. The Company sought first the knowledgeable, low key veteran who may have never been recognized for his talent. Many of the men enjoyed the task, though several reported back some new employees as "bad apples". That too was a benefit to the company, and permitted them to recognize and remove some troublesome people before they became "vested".

The Superintendent is long retired, as are most of the mentors. But lots of people today recall the person to whom they were assigned who helped "show them the ropes".

Doc mentions the selection of certain individuals for special assignments. Naturally the contracts require extra assignments to be posted when possible and when not possible, to be called in seniority order. The supervisor assigned to a special project, if he was conversant in how the crew board operated, would work around this and always get the men he wanted on the extra.

As usual, the goal was to exclude blow-hards, troublemakers and incompetents. As those trains seem to cultivate in some with advanced seniority, it was often challenging to exclude a senior guy. But it was always done...

LongIslandTool wrote:The Mentor Program was the brain child of the Railroad's first female Superintendent.

Do you means, Helena W.?! I thought she's from LI Bus... not came up through the ranks in the Railroad.

No, Williams is president. This woman was a superintendent in the Transportation Department. She left shortly after Williams arrived.

As I said in previous posts, these contests and awards do nothing more than to pit one against the other and cause one to "top" the other in being a public buffoon. I've seen them in the subway and it gets them nowhere. It does not net them extra pay(God forbid that should happen; they would be dancing on the car rooftops in their underwear.) Neither can they receive gifts(forbidden by public law, in Transit's case, not for a commuter trainman. Their passengers always give them a bottle at Christmas.) from the passengers. Awards are nice when they are truly earned. As a sidebar: Too much "A for effort" is given in schools and other institutions to make those not deserving feel good. The union is right to oppose these projects because show favor to one or a certain group. Reward ALL those who meet an objective criteria for perfect attendance or safety. Courtesy is nice, but it can be judged with subjectivity. One's idea of courtesy is another's idea of buffonery, or for that matter, can be ignored or dismissed. I know. It happens to me. Remember about "the road to hell.."

Keithsy, I could not agree with you more. Among the wisest words spoken here...