Question Regarding Trading/Swapping Seniority Dates

[railroadman2010]

Hey guys/gals. Have a few questions and not really sure where to ask this topic.

Does anyone know any information regarding transferring your locomotive engineer seniority from a former BN to former Santa Fe Region? I'm an engineer working in the Seattle, Washington Pacific NW Seniority Region (former BN) and due to family reasons, i'm thinking about requesting a transfer to California. Problem is I have heard that California is a former Santa Fe and that I would have to restart my seniority all over again (I have 6 years engineer seniority- not much but enough to work as a hoghead year round up here in the NW).

I have heard many different things and no one really seems to know. Anyway, I have a few questions that maybe someone can answer or help:

1) I've heard that if you transfer from a former BN to Santa Fe or vice versa and if your engineer seniority date is older than January 1, 2017 that your engineer seniority would be reestablished as January 1, 2017 (heard it from a Trainmaster and a RFE that were engineers themselves) rather than starting over as the day you are approved transfer (for example, if I was approved next week). Is this true? Anyone know anything about this?

2) I've also heard that if I were able to find another engineer in a former Santa Fe Seniority District (California) that would want to trade/swap engineer seniority dates with me (and say move to the Pacific NW) that this would be okay and that we would be able to just swap engineer seniority dates with each other and not have to restart our engineer seniority dates over. Is this true? Anyone know anything about this? Once again, heard this from a RFE and a Terminal Manager that have engineer dates.

3) If the second question is true, does anyone in California or in any region with a former Santa Fe seniority (since I've heard the former Santa Fe is systemwide and not closed district like former BN) would want to trade their engineer seniority with me? Again, my engineer seniority date is about 6 and a half years and up here in the Pacific NW, I'm able to able to hold as a hoghead year round (even now when its been really slow and they've been furloughing) working in some desirable pools (such as the Triangle) and my number is decent enough to be among the top guys in the extraboards up here. And if anyone is curious about moving to the NW, being that its an extremely important port to Asia and across the Pacific (and that also Seattle is one of the places where many trains originate or terminate) its probably one of busiest areas to work for in the BNSF System and one of the last places to furlough (I've heard that 2 years ago the NW accounted for something like 25% of the revenue for BNSF alone). Seniority is also young around Seattle and Everett so you would have no trouble working as an engineer year round with over 6 years seniority. If interested in swapping with me and moving up here, please PM me.

Thanks guys/gals for your help in advance.