Thread regarding Union Pacific Corp. layoffs

We like always are our worst enemy. Conductors are lazy, don't protect their jobs, sleep, complain etc., If you any fantasy of conductors being on road trains you're delusional. Prepare for a 40% cut of trainmen.

Kavanaugh wants two man crews cause he likes beer and wants it delivered safely. Looks like your hero let you down.

Every comment posted in support of this bill is some version of "But what about my job".

The only reason that there are two crew members is because the unions that represent the crews have effectively blocked the implementation of technology that can, has, and will replace them in order to protect those positions. It isn't more complicated than that. Now these same people want protection for their jobs enshrined into federal law. Fortunately, we have Gorsuch and Kavanaugh on the Supreme Court, so they'll shred this stupid bill if it ever becomes law, and rightly so.

You could just as easily pay people to be stationed an hour apart from each other and be on call to assist an engineer if there is a problem. They don't brake trains apart anyway emergency services takes an over or under pass unless absolutely unavailable. I don't want to see the conductors loose their jobs because of what it will to to the retirement. I'm just waiting for the ages and time to go up with the current amount of layoffs 65/35 is coming

I don’t know to what level Omaha universities are really discouraging students from interning at UP, but I’m sure word of mouth from other students is doing plenty. An internship at UP is almost the best scenario. See how c-appy the company, get your degree and move on to another company. Chalk it up to a s---y job everyone had while they were younger and forget about it.

The Safe Freight Act should also reference information technology safety and security standards. Bloomberg is reporting that Boeing got caught downsizing its IT engineering teams and outsourcing critical 737 MAX software programming to $9/hour H1B contractors and current/recent foreign national college grads. These contractors were underpaid, stressed and fearful of losing their contracts if they raised the smallest concern or failed to cut corners to stay on timelines.

Union Pacific's IT practices are equally alarming. Our Omaha-area university has stopped recommending our IT students pursue internships having learned that UP has:

1. Told working interns that $15/hour was too high and they'd be expected to have lower wages (while working more hours).

2. Put on critical production systems and being expected to be on-call 24x7 (a labor practice violation).

3. Badgered and threatened to not raise any concerns about security or viability, given they weren't being paid to be concerned about that. "We'll take care of that later."

4. Subjected to frequent s-xual harassment and other inappropriate conduct by supervisors.

In the Omaha academic community, Union Pacific is considered an unsafe workplace for our students and graduates. I'd strongly encourage individuals working with the Safe Freight Act to relay the concerns of IT professionals that given the practices we're observing, it would be expected that Union Pacific will have increasing safety and security incidents.

To anyone who thinks a one man crew is a good idea, you know absolutely nothing about how the railroad industry works. What happens when road power breaks down (and it happens a lot with how little railroads maintain their locomotives anymore), and the two mile long train is blocking a major crossing used by general public? What about the ambulance that needs that crossing to get a critically injured person to the hospital so they can be life flighted somewhere else? The engineer will have to secure the train, walk back to the crossing, tie hand brakes on the cut, pull the pin lifter if the train doesn't have too much slack or is bunched up too hard so that he/she can pull the pin lifter. If the pin lifter can't be pulled, it's back to the head end to untie the locomotive and head car handbrakes, bump the train, and then walk back to the cut car to try pulling the pin lifter again, and then walk back to the head end, untie handbrakes on the locomotives and cars at the head end, and then hope that the lock block doesn't drop when the train starts moving before the knuckle opens. It could take 2 hours to split a crossing, maybe even longer... And with PSR and block swapping in sidings out on the main... You think it's good for customer service because of the delays that will be caused by one person trying to do all that everytime they stop to drop off or pick up a cut of cars? And blind shoves while making a hook... Does that sound safe??? Not only no, but H E L L no!!!

I can't wait to pull a pin on a 15,000 ft long one man crew train.

Is it bad I like nailing my transportation buddies wives/girlfriends when they are out of town?

I’m just shocked and appalled that anyone in their right mind thinks 2 people on a train makes sense. Everyday we pay a conductor on the railroad is a day of FRAUD! You are absolutely taking money out of the pockets of shareholders and it isn’t necessary. This is why PSR MUST happen - because our make the companies so in-efficient! Pass one man crews NOW!!!!!

The only reason for one man crews is to increase the profits for the railroads. I think the communities are more concerned about safety though. If two man crews saves just one person’s life it is worth it over putting more money into the hedge fund’s pockets.

ALL Horsepuckey

This is another improperly named bill. A better name for this bill would be something like "HR 1748 Job Protection Bill" because that is the only thing that it does. If it passes into law I hope UP sues to get the law overturned in court.

Nobody has a right to impede progress to protect their job. Adapt and learn a new skill, and use the new skill to get a new job. Apparently the railroad (like every other American institution) will have to be dragged kicking and screaming into the modern age.

First off PTC is no closer to being 100% operational than the man in the moon. Listen to how many non compliant PTC tickets are given over the radio every day or night in your area. We replace 10 TMC boxes just to get 1 good one because they are repaired in Mexico or somebodies garage. Maintenance isn’t done properly or deferred for PTC to work properly. I don’t think anybody has to worry about 1 man crews. They can’t keep c-ap together with 2 man crews.

Here’s the deal. What kind of mo--n wants only one person operating a 3 mile train. So what happens when there is a problem. Who is going to help him fix that problem 2 miles back. The f---ing ghost of vena and his 30 second walk around for a train inspection. Everyone will appreciate a 2 man crew when the railroad is hauling hazardous chemical through their community and it doesn’t derail k--ling everyone.

I dont think Tier 1 RR's spent Billions of dollars on PTC for it NOT to be used for 1 man train crews. The way the PSR is going it fits right into their money grabbing plans.

Trains will be automated, that's what PTC is.

2 man crews do nothing for safety, this is just a sad and doomed attempt to save unnecessary jobs.

Having two crew members only makes operation safer because railroad unions have prevented the implementation of automated train operating systems. In almost every other developed country freight and passenger rail systems have some version of automation technology, which has led directly to safer and more reliable rail operations everywhere it has been applied.

This bill is just another example of the railroad unions running to the federal government for job security and protection.

More crew on a train is good for all of us:

That is why I have introduced H.R. 1748, the Safe Freight Act, which would maintain rail safety by requiring that all freight trains are operated by at least two crew members – a certified conductor and a certified engineer. In the aftermath of the Lac-Mégantic