UP is one of the few work places that rewards your good work ethic and loyalty by making you go backwards in your career. Thanks UP for demoting almost all of your workforce. You know how to treat your employees right.
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The OP doesn't apply to everyone equally.
If you went to work for the railroad straight out of high school and stayed there for your entire career, rested on the laurels of your union status, and learned no new marketable/transferable skills, then you're in a bad situation with few options.
If you went to work for the railroad for a few years straight out of college, picked up transferable/marketable skills along the way, and built up a network outside of UP, chances are you'll be fine.
This probably helps to explain why these message boards feature a lot of grumpy agreement employees complaining about the railroad management, which might mean something if they weren't already constantly complaining about management before the layoffs began.
My advice to all is to treat the UP like a rest stop, not a career.
Does anyone really think the UP gives a damn about you or any of its employees? This is the ONLY company I ever worked for that actively seeks to fire you, while they're explaining to you how much money they've invested training you. Don't worry though, the darkest days for the UP are just ahead.
Well there is a former VP walking on the rocks cause he got fired and nobody outside of UP was impressed when he signed his name with a crayon and then ate it. Good thing he had seniority.
Managers are even going back to tools.
Precision Scheduled Railroading = Where you put in 10 years and are currently worse off than you were six months after marking up for the first time.