So after I posted that CN is hiring conductors yesterday, I received a fair number of messages regarding the job, so Ill give you my two cents; It isnt for everyone. It definitely takes a certain type of person (and a certain type of spouse...) Beyond the obvious abuse on your body, it will take you away from home in the most inconvenient times, and youre going to miss things. Youll miss holidays, birthdays, family get togethers, milestones in your kids lives, concerts, sporting events and so on and so forth. Youll have periods of time where youre awake for twenty or thirty plus hours because you were caught with your pants down and youve been awake all day when you get called for work unexpectedly, or because you had something to get taken care of and simply didnt have time to sleep. Youll get very familiar with living in a hotel once or twice a week. An engineer mapped it out one day for me, and if we assume that we stay in a hotel on average twice a week, by the time I retire I will have spent nearly ten years in hotel rooms. Your friends will constantly ask if youre off this weekend, or if you have to work tomorrow, or the next day, and you wont have an answer for them because you simply wont know until that exact moment; planning becomes a thing of the past. ...but beyond all the sacrifices made, you will have a pension. A pretty impressive one. In fact, your SPOUSE will also have a pension for putting up with the decades of inconvenience. Your favorable rate of pay will allow you to provide a great life for your family, and your outstanding health insurance will ensure that they are taken care of and healthy. You will work with some of the greatest people youve ever had the opportunity to work with. Youll work in an industry that thrives even in recessions because freight still has to be moved... and because of all the sacrifices you will make, the experience you gain will make you an extremely marketable individual, be it within the rail industry, or elsewhere. I can say with absolute certainty, all things considered, I cant imagine doing anything else to earn a living. Any other questions, feel free to ask.
Posted on: Thu, 03 Apr 2014 20:30:10 +0000