Who Wants To Be A Furloughed Rail Employee!!!!

Thats right folks the ole furlough is happening again. Don't panic though if you are'nt in the Fort Worth, Texas area this should'nt affect you... Unless of course the many of the furloughed here come to your terminal. I hired on in early '07 and was furloughed from November '09 thru June '10, and already getting furloughed again. This is great especially since we were fed all that garbage on BNSF Propaganda TV about how the BNSF is committed to keeping it's newly recalled employees working. Or Greg Fox's statement in Railway Magazine that "BNSF expects no furlough's until June". Wow!! But in all fairness this is'nt just the carriers fault. This P.O.S UTU we work under in Texas voted down retention boards again, WITHOUT a vote from its members!! Way to go UTU, I hope you completely disappear from Texas!!

Boo hoo. I have 10 years with BNSF and am the bottom guy on the conductors extra board. I have 6 an an engineer and am quite a ways out from being promoted right now. Its going to be like this for a while so get a clue. Maybe you can go flip burgers and just quit all together. I guess I shouldnt insult the good folks who make my whopper jr. My apologies to you BK.

Like we used to say in Galesburg, you should have come off the farm sooner.

Think this topic would be better suited to the Employment Forum...

What's the big deal? When I hired out on the C&O in Walbridge, Ohio back in the '70s furloughs were away of life on the railroad. I expected to be furloughed on Dec 23rd every year till March/April depended upon on how severe the winter had been that year. In 1977 there was a coal miners strike being furloughed most of that year I didn't get enough work to qualify for RR unemployment during the winter in 1978-1979. It would of taken over 10 years seniority to work year round if I'd stayed in Ohio. I was lucky during an economic downturn in 1980 C&O needed people in Virginia and I took a chance and transferred. People act like getting furloughed is the end of the world today. I like to refer to it as paying ones dues. Best advice save money. Stay away from big purchases till one knows they'll work steady. Furloughs make for better railroaders they build charector one appreciates what they have more than if everything was just given to them without any hardship.

I hired at 18 and was furloughed from the CN after 2 1/2 years and a short stint in the seat in mid '09, went to Amtrak, was furloughed again and then relocated 700 miles to hold a steady engr job on the NEC. I like getting paid more than being on the street... it's the times we live in. Sorry you believe jobs last forever in the worst economic depression since the great one...

And by the way, I'm holding a regular job, straight days with two days a week off. It ain't all for NAUGHT!

If you guys want steady work then what you need to do is transfer to Signals,Roadway or go into the shops. You'll be busting your butt more but you'll have a paycheck every 2 weeks.

Furloughs are a part of life out here. They blow smoke up your ass when you hire out, telling you you'll be begging for time off . Ha, furloughs and lies, they're alive and well out here.

Well I walked 58 miles to get to the yard office when I hired out, uphill both ways though the snow.

I didn't work steady till I transfered to Signals from Roadway. Best move I ever made.