The Changing Rail Engineering Workforce

Shutterstock

––Candidate Expectations Have Shifted Significantly–– FROM THE DOME, JUNE 2026 RAILWAY TRACK AND STRUCTURES.

When I hired onto the railroad in 2002, a Chief Engineer told my trainee group that 85% of the Engineering team would be eligible for full retirement within five to eight years. He meant it as encouragement, as opportunity was everywhere. The industry was filled with managers who had come aboard during a sustained hiring wave that began in the mid-1960s. Long tenure at a single company was the norm, and deep operational experience defined leadership from front-line managers to the executive level. 

My first Assistant Roadmaster assignment came when the incumbent, after 26 years in the same role, was finally promoted to the Roadmaster position he had long awaited. 

Times have certainly changed. Workforce expectations in the U.S. have shifted significantly. Younger employees bring defined career goals and expect their workplace to align with them. When it does not, they move on, often across companies or even industries. Career mobility is now common. Employees seek faster advancement, higher pay, and increased authority earlier than previous generations, and they are achieving it. As a result, traditional management styles that relied on long-term loyalty have steadily lost effectiveness. 

It is no longer safe to assume that tenure will follow dedication alone. 

Generational change has also reduced organizational depth. The days of new hires being surrounded by large numbers of 30-year veterans are gone. Along with that, we have lost the organic, experience-based development that once came from simply working in that environment. Railroads have responded with stronger training programs, and FRA’s updates to Part 243 have helped raise baseline competency. 

Even so, it has become increasingly difficult to identify truly promotable employees. Development no longer happens as naturally as it once did, as both workforce culture and the railroad business model have evolved—especially since the mid-2010s. 

Growth always brings new challenges. While I am neither a sociologist nor an economist, it is clear that the factors influencing our industry today differ markedly from those of 25 years ago. Career expectations have shifted, and the traditional rewards of long-term loyalty had already begun losing their appeal well before today’s workforce entered the field. 

One influence that cannot be ignored is the rise of private equity and activist investors –– not just in railroads, but across the broader economy. 

Today, it is difficult to find industries, from HVAC to veterinary services, which have not seen consolidation by investment groups. If a business generates profit, it draws attention. While the Staggers Act set railroads on a profit-driven path decades ago, the growing influence of activist investors around 2017 marked a notable shift. Railroads have since been pushed to operate with greater capital discipline and labor efficiency, with shareholder returns becoming a central focus of leadership. 

A longtime engineering manager recently described what he called the “new problem” of “railroading without a budget” —– a striking observation given today’s historic profitability and record-low operating ratios. 

Railroads are generating significant wealth, and more employees are pursuing it, whether through accelerated promotion paths, moving between companies, or launching their own contracting and consulting businesses. The frequency of these moves is exponentially higher than in previous generations. 

At the same time, our operating performance continues to improve. Injury frequency rates have fallen drastically since the turn of the century. Reportable derailments are down 46% since 2005 according to recent FRA data. Equipment is safer, with pressurized cabs and collision avoidance systems. Mechanization has replaced many labor-intensive tasks, improving both safety and efficiency, while technology, and now AI, continues to reshape operations. 

Stories from earlier eras: standing ankle-deep in creosote tossing crossties from a gondola or cutting rail with a chisel and sledgehammer were fascinating to hear early in my career. Today, they are, thankfully, unimaginable to newer employees. 

The forces shaping our industry are both constant and evolving. Generational shifts and financial pressures will continue to influence how we operate. But the fundamentals remain unchanged: success requires strong leadership, an effective workforce, and sustained profitability. 

The railroad industry has adapted for more than 200 years. Early in my career, the common ethos was “as long as there is coal, there will be a railroad, and coal isn’t going anywhere.” That assumption has proven less certain over time, but the larger truth still holds. 

This industry is resilient. It will continue to evolve, and succeed, just as it always has.