The railroad industry, which shed some 50,000 jobs over the past decade, has a challenge on its hands.
Faced with a graying work force, it needs to convince job seekers that employment opportunities exist in what’s viewed as a shrinking industry. And it needs to get ready to train the job seekers it’s able to attract.
“There are going to be great opportunities in the railroad industry,” said Cathryn Frankenberg, assistant vice president of labor relations and human resources for CPR, the U.S. unit of Canadian Pacific Railway.
Six thousand rail workers retired from U.S. railroads during the first four months of this year, the same number that retired in all of 2001, said CPR spokeswoman Laura Baenen.
A change in the federally operated railroad retirement program a year ago is a big reason for the retirement speed-up. It’s prompting workers to take early retirement–at age 60–if they have 30 years’ experience.
Rail companies are gearing up their training programs to prepare replacement workers.
CPR operates an engineer- and conductor-training center, complete with an engine simulator machine similar to flight simulators used by pilots.
