ELKHART, Ind. (AP) - A railroad is looking to hire additional conductors at its facilities in northern Indiana.
Norfolk Southern Railroad hopes to add up to 65 conductors at its Elkhart facility by mid-2019, The Elkhart Truth reported. About 180 people currently operate the Elkhart-Chicago route.
More than 100 trains pass through Elkhart daily. Their individual cars are sorted on the yard’s more than 70 tracks and reassembled to send out agriculture, construction and automotive products.
“Elkhart is actually one of the bigger hubs that we have for Norfolk Southern, one of the busiest hubs that we have,” engineer and conductor Arin Johnson said. “There’s a lot more traffic we’re getting. Actually here in the last six to eight months it’s been crazy, the amount of traffic that we’re getting.”
The hiring push is a part of the company’s larger goal to add 1,800 conductors network-wide. The company is seeing increased business, said Susan Terpay, Norfolk Southern public relations director.
“More shippers are choosing to move their goods by rail because it’s less expensive, it’s more efficient environmentally,” she said.
The company is specifically looking for conductors who could later be promoted to an engineer position, said Nick Chamberlin, a corporate recruiter with the railway.
“There’s a lot of upward mobility with the position,” he said.
Conductors are in charge of the train, freight and crew, while an engineer operates the locomotive itself.
Conductors could earn up to $75,000 annually after their first year, Chamberlin said.
“There’s a guaranteed minimum of $1,700 biweekly, so even if we slow down, you’re guaranteed to get paid, which is nice,” he said.
The company is also looking to add up to 65 conductors at its Fort Wayne location.
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