June 10, 2008
Hired For My Dream Job
Well, sort of.
For roughly the last 10 months I have rekindled my interest in all things railroads. Around February I had actually put in an application at the Union Pacific Railroad website. There were openings for "Train Crew Service" in Watsonville, Milpitas and Oakland. I had applied for all three to see what would transpire. I received an invitation to a reading comprehension test in April. I took the test scoring eighty five percent. It was a twenty question test to be completed in thirty minutes. Essentially you read from the freight handlers manual and then chose the appropriate answer. It was an interesting experience since this was a completely foreign area of knowledge for me.
A couple of weeks after I took the test I received an invitation to a hiring session at the Santa Cruz/Scott's Valley Hilton. They gave the lowdown on what the job was all about. Even though I had applied for specific locations, the job actually was a position in the Roseville service area. The geographic points of this service area stretched from Klamath at the Oregon border on the north side down to San Luis Obispo in the south and east to Winnemucca, Nevada. Once your training was over after about 8 weeks, you "mark up". You then bid with your seniority on open positions. Since you have little to no seniority, you may wind up bidding on a slot in Winnemucca, Nevada. You have 48 hours to report (on your own dime, I might add) to the location and find a place to stay. Admittedly, our HR rep doing the information session said a lot of folks sleep in their cars when they first arrive at their new location. However, there is a caveat. You could be on the way to this Winnemucca location and your cell phone could ring. It's the Crewmaster telling you you've been bumped off your newlty aquired position. Time to find a new job to bid on. You find an open shift in Bakersfield. Nine hours into your drive to get there, your phone rings again. Guess what? You've been bumped again. The process starts over. To top things off, you haven't even worked yet so you are not getting paid for any of this. The example is a worst case scenario but it could happen.
There is also a chance that once your training is over you could be furloughed because there are no open positions available. Accarding to the HR rep, thirty percent of the Union Pacific workforce is retiring in the next five years. That would seem to be good odds for moving up in seniority rather quickly. That doesn't mean that the service area you apply for has openings already. They may be hiring to prepare for future retirements.
The discussion also involved benefits. They spoke of co-pays for medical and prescriptions. Currently mine are infinitesmal compared to the described benefits of UP. The kicker was the vacation accrual. After two years you get a week. Nothing out of the ordinary. Four years, two weeks. Nine years, three weeks. Seventeen years for four weeks. Last but not least, twenty-five years years before you get five weeks. This may sound like a good deal to some. To me it was the straw that broke the camels back. I thought long and hard about taking a pay cut. I figured I could do it. I thought about the co-pays for doctor visits and prescriptions. That would hurt a lot. The vacation schedule put a nail in the coffin of my dream job. With the inconvieniences and disruptions in your life and that of your family, the adjustment I would have to make to accept my dream job offer was more than I could handle.
At least I can say I got hired for my dream job! I'll have to keep my part-time "job" as a foamer for now!
(edit 7/22/08) The title link takes you to an article by a fellow blogger, railfan, photographer and general rabel rouser that has been in the same situation regarding jobs.
For roughly the last 10 months I have rekindled my interest in all things railroads. Around February I had actually put in an application at the Union Pacific Railroad website. There were openings for "Train Crew Service" in Watsonville, Milpitas and Oakland. I had applied for all three to see what would transpire. I received an invitation to a reading comprehension test in April. I took the test scoring eighty five percent. It was a twenty question test to be completed in thirty minutes. Essentially you read from the freight handlers manual and then chose the appropriate answer. It was an interesting experience since this was a completely foreign area of knowledge for me.
A couple of weeks after I took the test I received an invitation to a hiring session at the Santa Cruz/Scott's Valley Hilton. They gave the lowdown on what the job was all about. Even though I had applied for specific locations, the job actually was a position in the Roseville service area. The geographic points of this service area stretched from Klamath at the Oregon border on the north side down to San Luis Obispo in the south and east to Winnemucca, Nevada. Once your training was over after about 8 weeks, you "mark up". You then bid with your seniority on open positions. Since you have little to no seniority, you may wind up bidding on a slot in Winnemucca, Nevada. You have 48 hours to report (on your own dime, I might add) to the location and find a place to stay. Admittedly, our HR rep doing the information session said a lot of folks sleep in their cars when they first arrive at their new location. However, there is a caveat. You could be on the way to this Winnemucca location and your cell phone could ring. It's the Crewmaster telling you you've been bumped off your newlty aquired position. Time to find a new job to bid on. You find an open shift in Bakersfield. Nine hours into your drive to get there, your phone rings again. Guess what? You've been bumped again. The process starts over. To top things off, you haven't even worked yet so you are not getting paid for any of this. The example is a worst case scenario but it could happen.
There is also a chance that once your training is over you could be furloughed because there are no open positions available. Accarding to the HR rep, thirty percent of the Union Pacific workforce is retiring in the next five years. That would seem to be good odds for moving up in seniority rather quickly. That doesn't mean that the service area you apply for has openings already. They may be hiring to prepare for future retirements.
The discussion also involved benefits. They spoke of co-pays for medical and prescriptions. Currently mine are infinitesmal compared to the described benefits of UP. The kicker was the vacation accrual. After two years you get a week. Nothing out of the ordinary. Four years, two weeks. Nine years, three weeks. Seventeen years for four weeks. Last but not least, twenty-five years years before you get five weeks. This may sound like a good deal to some. To me it was the straw that broke the camels back. I thought long and hard about taking a pay cut. I figured I could do it. I thought about the co-pays for doctor visits and prescriptions. That would hurt a lot. The vacation schedule put a nail in the coffin of my dream job. With the inconvieniences and disruptions in your life and that of your family, the adjustment I would have to make to accept my dream job offer was more than I could handle.
At least I can say I got hired for my dream job! I'll have to keep my part-time "job" as a foamer for now!
June 09, 2008
Lawsuits Are The Answer
It always amazes me that when trouble strikes the first on the scene are the lawyers. We wonder why goods and services are so expensive. The million dollar scalding cup of coffee incident at McDonald's is a good example.
This article on CalTrain having found some hairline cracks near the wheel assemblies of their passenger cars amazes me. The fourth sentence of the article talks about CalTrain officials "looking into their legal options after the flaws were discovered". Talk of a lawsuit is thrown around before any mention of discussions with the manufacturer of the equipment. The assumption is there was negligence involved in these cracks appearing in the wheel assemblies? Any reputable manufacturer would be anxious to correct a problem with their equipment to maintain their customers' satisfaction.
My hope is that the politicians running The Peninsula Joint Powers Board are not looking to help bridge the gap in their upcoming 2009 budget shortfall. They are politicians so I'm not holding my breath.
This article on CalTrain having found some hairline cracks near the wheel assemblies of their passenger cars amazes me. The fourth sentence of the article talks about CalTrain officials "looking into their legal options after the flaws were discovered". Talk of a lawsuit is thrown around before any mention of discussions with the manufacturer of the equipment. The assumption is there was negligence involved in these cracks appearing in the wheel assemblies? Any reputable manufacturer would be anxious to correct a problem with their equipment to maintain their customers' satisfaction.
My hope is that the politicians running The Peninsula Joint Powers Board are not looking to help bridge the gap in their upcoming 2009 budget shortfall. They are politicians so I'm not holding my breath.
May 09, 2008
Traffic Jam
I normally frown on the forwarded internet joke. However, I felt this one had enough humor to make it noteworthy.
This one would be for M.D. in transportation who has made me a member of his "forwrds" list for all of his MoveOn.org garbage.
A driver is stuck in a traffic jam on the highway. Nothing is moving. Suddenly a man knocks on his window.
The driver rolls down his window and asks, "What's happening?"
The man replies, "Terrorists have kidnapped Bill and Hillary Clinton, Ted Kennedy, Jesse Jackson, and Al Sharpton. They are demanding a $10 million ransom for the five of them. They said if it's not paid within the hour they are going to douse them with gasoline and set them on fire. We're going from car to car, taking up a collection."
The driver asks, "How much is everyone giving, on average?"
"About a gallon" he replies.
This one would be for M.D. in transportation who has made me a member of his "forwrds" list for all of his MoveOn.org garbage.
Mischievious Kitty
YouTube Broadcast Yourself™
D.B. Getting Into Trouble
Video Description
D.B. wreaking havoc as always. D.B. is short for "dumpster baby". We found him in our backyard when he was about 10 days old. His eyes weren't even open yet. We think his mom dropped him as she tried to transport him across the back fence. Since we have a dog, she was probably not willing to chance a rescue. We had a cat at the time so our dog was used to them. She was the one that alerted us to the stranger in the yard!!
Using YouTube
May 06, 2008
Amtrak Capitol Corridor
I took this in Alviso on a calm morning. The lack of a breeze provided a great reflective surface on the water.
April 01, 2008
Mallard
I was eating my lunch (gourmet... in my car) and up walks a group of ducks looking for a handout. I'm thinking, "Hey...get a job!"
March 19, 2008
Great Bumper Stickers
Why in the Hell should I have to "Press 1 for English"?
To anger a Conservative, lie to him. To anger a Liberal, tell him the truth.
It will be a great day when all children go to private schools and the money wasted on public education will go to building bombers
**Here's a particularly edgy one....
I wish Hillary had married OJ
While in poor taste it is slightly humorous (more so to those with twisted humor senses)
Government: Getting nothing done, expensively
To anger a Conservative, lie to him. To anger a Liberal, tell him the truth.
It will be a great day when all children go to private schools and the money wasted on public education will go to building bombers
**Here's a particularly edgy one....
I wish Hillary had married OJ
While in poor taste it is slightly humorous (more so to those with twisted humor senses)
Government: Getting nothing done, expensively
Anti-Global Alarmist Bumper Sticker
Isn't this great? I love it!
I poached the image from Cafepress.com. A page called "Veer to the Right".
I poached the image from Cafepress.com. A page called "Veer to the Right".
March 09, 2008
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