Railroad Conductors and Yardmasters
Conductor,
Freight Conductor,
Railroad Conductor,
Yardmaster
What they do: Coordinate activities of switch-engine crew within railroad yard, industrial plant, or similar location. Conductors coordinate activities of train crew on passenger or freight trains. Yardmasters review train schedules and switching orders and coordinate activities of workers engaged in railroad traffic operations, such as the makeup or breakup of trains and yard switching.
- DemandHigh
- state Avg. Salary $$$$$$66,090Download Career Flyer
What do they typically do on the job?
- Signal engineers to begin train runs, stop trains, or change speed, using telecommunications equipment or hand signals.
- Confer with engineers regarding train routes, timetables, and cargoes, and to discuss alternative routes when there are rail defects or obstructions.
- Receive information regarding train or rail problems from dispatchers or from electronic monitoring devices.
Personality
Interests
Career interests describe the perspectives and interests of people who enjoy the type of work involved in this career.
Discover what your interests are by taking the Interest Profiler Quiz
Knowledge
People who want to pursue this career have knowledge in these areas.
Safety and Government
Public safety and security
Law and government
Transportation
Movement of people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road
Arts and Humanities
English language
Education and Training
Teaching and course design
Abilities
Whether you have received formal training or not, these types of abilities are helpful in this career.
Verbal
Communicate by speaking
Listen and understand what people say
Ideas and Logic
Notice when problems happen
Order or arrange things
Attention
Pay attention to something without being distracted
Do two or more things at the same time
Hearing and Speech
Recognize spoken words
Skills
People who want to pursue this career have skills in these areas.
Basic Skills
Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements
Talking to others
Problem Solving
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
People and Technology Systems
Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one
Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it
Work Values
Work values describe how your core beliefs align with those commonly needed for this career.
Support
Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees. Corresponding needs are Company Policies, Supervision: Human Relations and Supervision: Technical.
Independence
Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions. Corresponding needs are Creativity, Responsibility and Autonomy.
Working Conditions
Occupations that satisfy this work value offer job security and good working conditions. Corresponding needs are Activity, Compensation, Independence, Security, Variety and Working Conditions.
Does this sound like something you'd like to do?
1. Do some research
- Identify how your interests, values, and strengths match this occupation
- Talk to someone who works in this field or spend a day job shadowing
- Use the colleges and training directory to explore programs related to this career
2. Plan your next move
- Talk to your college and career counselor or school admissions staff
- Visit Idaho Launch
- Search for available Railroad Conductors and Yardmasters jobs on Idaho Works
Data for NSI career cards comes from the following: Idaho Department of Labor, US Bureau of Labor Statistics, O*NET, MyNextMove, and Career OneStop