E mployment and C hahging

Occupational Patterns in the

R ailroad Industry

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Cover picture: The rapid shift from steam to diesel-electric

locomotives exemplifies technological change on the railroads.

Courtesy of Erie Railroad

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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
Employment and Changing

Occupational Patterns in the

Railroad Industry

1947-60

Bulletin No. 1344

February 196S

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

W. Willard Wirtz, Secretary

BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS

Ewan Clague, Commissioner

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PREFACE

Shifts in the relative importance of industries and occupations 

are inevitable in an economy typified b y constantly changing 

markets, technology, resou rces, and other structural characteristic s. The railroad industry is a prim e example of the effects 

of such change. Once an industrial giant exem plifying a pioneering 

and expanding A m erica, railroads have not kept pace with general 

econ om ic growth in the p ost-W orld War II period. Railroad 

em ploym ent has fallen sharply and, in the p r o c e s s , many occupations have been severely affected.

This bulletin analyzes employment trends and occupational 

changes in the railroad industry in the 1947-60 period. The study 

is part of the continuing program of research on the changing 

industrial structure and occupational com position of the A m erican 

econom y conducted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The Bureau is grateful for the cooperation of railroad industry 

and union officials and representatives of government agencies 

who cooperated generously in reviewing and commenting on the 

draft of the study. The photographs included in this bulletin were 

supplied by the A ssociation of Am erican Railroads. This bulletin 

was prepared by Bernard Y abroff and W illiam K elley with the 

assistance of Catherine F. Delano, of the B ureau’ s Division of 

Manpower and Occupational Outlook, under the supervision of 

Sol Swerdloff, Chief, under the general direction of Harold 

Goldstein, Assistant C om m issioner for Manpower and Em ployment Statistics.

111

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CONTENTS

Page

Postw ar em ploym ent d e c l i n e ................................................................ 1

Changes in occupational stru ctu re .............................. 7

Maintenance e m p lo y e e s ........................................................................... 10

Equipment and stores .................................................................... » . . 10

Way and stru ctu res....................................... ....................................... 12

Roadway m aintenance....................................................................... 13

Structures maintenance . ................................................................ 16

Signal and te le g ra p h ........................................................................ 17

Transportation employees (other than train, engine,

and y a r d ).............. 18

Train, engine, and yard em ployees ................................... ............. 20

T e r m i n a l s ....................................................................................... .. . . « . 21

Road freight service .................... .................. .................................. 22

Road passenger serv ice ............................ 23

W hite-collar em ployees ..................... . 0 . ........................ .................... 23

Clerical p e r s o n n e l ......................... 23

Professionals, subprofessionals, and agents ........................ 24

Executives, officials, and staff assistants ............................... 25

M iscellaneous serv ice em ployee s . . . „ ............................................. 25

Selected bibliography ................................ 27

CHARTS

1. Wage and salary w ork ers em ployed in all nonfarm,

manufacturing, railroad, and transportation (except 

railroad) industries, 1947-60 .............................. 2

2. Employment, revenue traffic, and output per manhour, Class I ra ilroa d s, 1947-60 .......................................... 3

3. Intercity p a s s e n g e r -m ile s , 1949-60 ........................................ 4

4. Decline in major railroad occupational groups,

1947-60 ................ 8

5. R ailroad em ploym ent in selected occupational groups,

1947-60............................................................................... 9

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Employment and Changing Occupational

Patterns in the Railroad Industry 1 9 4 7 " 6 0

Changes in the relative importance 

of occupations within an industry occur 

not only in industries in which em ployment is expanding, but also in those in 

which employment is declining. Nowhere is the latter situation m ore dram atically illustrated than on the Nation's railroads, where the occupational 

structure has changed during a time 

of severely declining postwar employment resulting from widespread technological developments and changing

patterns of transportation and produ ction. Employment fell substantially in 

many railroad occupations and dram a t i c a l l y in o t h e r s , showed little 

change in som e, and even increased 

in a few. As a result of these changes, 

the relative im portance of m ajor ra ilroad occupational groups has shifted. 

This study is concerned principally 

with employment changes that occurred 

in railroad occupations between 1947 

and 1960, and their underlying causes.

Postwar Employment Decline

The employment decline on the railroads in the postwar period w a s an 

acceleration of a longrun trend. F rom 

an alltime peak of about 2 m illion in 

1920, railroad em ploym ent fell to 1*4 

million in 1947. By i960, employment 

was down to about 7 9 0 ,0 0 0 ,1 a decline 

of approximately 600,000, or m ore than

1 Employment data, 1920-60, are for Class

I and Class II railroads. Transport Statistics

in the United States, I960 (interstate Commerce Commission, Bureau of Transport Economics and Statistics), Pt. I, table 155, p.

107. Occupational employment data from 1947

to 1960 analyzed later in this article are for

Class I line-haul railroads, which account for

more than 90 percent of all railroad, employment. These data, covering 128 occupational

divisions (classifications) for which the Commission collects employment information,

are available annually in the source cited

above, table 69. Typical occupational titles

under each of these classifications are listed

in Rules Governing the Classification of Railroad Employees and Reports of their Service

and Compensation, prescribed by the Interstate Commerce Commission, effective Jan. 1,

1951, and published by the Association

of American Railroads, Washington, Do Co ,

Aug. 1951.

2In the two industries with the next largest

employment declines between 1947 and I960--

textiles and bituminous coal m ining--the

numbers of workers fell about 390, 000 (29

percent) and 260, 000 (60 percent), respectively.

40 percent, in little m ore than a decade 

(chart l). (P relim in ary data from the 

Interstate C om m erce C om m ission indicate that by 1961, railroad employment 

had fallen to about 730, 000.)

The 1947-60 decline on the r a ilroads was numerically much greater 

than in any other in d u stry .2 N evertheless, because of the widespread 

geographical dispersion of the ra ilroad work fo r c e , the extent of the e m ­

ployment decline on the railroads generally has not received as much national attention as that of other industries with substantial, but less 

extensive, employment losses. There 

has been, of course, intense local concern over the impact of declining railroad employment in particular communities largely dependent on railroad 

operations.

Postw ar em ploym ent decline on the 

railroads mainly resulted from extensive developments in railroad technology (chart 2) and the loss of business, mainly passenger, to other modes 

o f transport. Competition from other 

common carriers (trucks, buses, pipelines, and airlines), private truckers, 

and passenger automobiles stimulated 

the introduction and improvement o f 

machines and equipment, m aterials, 

and methods of operation on the ra ilroads.

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Chart 1. W age and Salary Workers Employed in All Nonfarm, Manufacturing,

Railroad, and Transportation (Except Railroad) Industries, 1947-60

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS

* Includes employment in local and suburban transportation-, intercity and rural

buslines; motor freight transportation and storage; air transportation,

common carriers.

Source: Railroads, Class I and EL employment, Interstate Commerce Commission;

other: Bureau of Labor Statistics.

T h e pressure to introduce laborsaving innovations has also been attributed, in p a r t, to increasing railroad 

wage rates and other labor c o s t s . 3 

One of the factors that contributed to 

in crea sed labor costs was a reduction 

in the standard workweek for railroad 

em ployees. However, the reduction in 

the workweek of nonoperating em ployees 

to 40 hours in 1949, f o l l o w e d by increased railroad activity in 1950 and 

1951, helped to stem the downward trend 

in railroad employment in this period. 

The 40-hour workweek for yard operat3 William Haber, nTechnological Innovation

and Labor in the Railroad Industry," Technological Change and the Future of the Railways. Selected papers from a 3-day conference conducted by the Transportation Center

at Northwestern University, Evanston, 111. ,

1961, p. 112.

ing em ployees was negotiated in 1952 on 

an optional basis; by I960, it covered 

most terminal operating employees.

The effects of growing competition 

were evident in sharply declining railroad passenger traffic and a lack of 

growth in freight m ovem ent. In railroad passenger traffic, a downward 

trend began as far back as the early 

1920‘ s with the increasing use of the 

private automobile. The decline in 

traffic was reversed during World War 

II as a result of dependence on r a ilroads for mass troop movements, curtailment of automobile production, and 

rationing of tires and gasoline; after 

the war, the decline resum ed. Between 

1949 and I960, intercity passenger traffic c a rrie d by railroad s shrank fro m 36 

billion p a s s e n g e r - m i l e s to about 22

2 EMPLOYMENT AND CHANGING OCCUPATIONAL PATTERNS

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Chart 2. Employment, Revenue Traffic, and Output Per Man-Hour

Class I Railroads, 1947-60

I r-IN D E X (1947=100)-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Output Per

Production W orker |Man-Hour

Ibased on total car miles)

Freight Ton-Miles

Employment

Passenger Miles *

*Cfass I tine-houl railroads only.

Source: Interstate Commerce Commission? Bureau of Labor Statistics. UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

BUREAU O f LABOR STATISTICS

RAILROAD INDUSTRY 3

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Chart 3. Intercity Passenger-Miles, 1949-60

Revenue Intercity Passerig£r-Miles

Billion Passenger Miles

Railroads

(steam and electric) Airways

Motor Carriers

of Passengers (bus)

Inland Waterways

Total Intercity Passenger-Miles

Billion Passenger Miles

All Means

Total Motor Vehicles

Private Automobiles

Inland waterways (including Great Lakes) 1.19 to 2.07 billion passenger miles.

Motor Carriers

ot Passengers

(bus) 1

Railroads

(steam and electric) Airways

1 Schoolbus data are excluded. Data for motor carriers, 1957-60, are not comparable.

^Includes domestic commercial revenue, pleasure, and business travel.

Source: Interstate Commerce Commission; Bureau of Labor Statistics.

UNfTEO STATES DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

BUREAU o f LABOR STATISTICS

4 EMPLOYMENT AND CHANGING OCCUPATIONAL PATTERNS

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Estimated volume of intercity freight traffic, public and private, by transportation

agency, 1947, 1950, 1955, and I960

Type of carrier Ton-miles (billions)

1947 1950 1955 I960

T o t a l ........................................................................ 1, 018. 6 1, 062. 6 1, 274. 8 1, 330. 9

Railway revenue ton-miles (including 

electric railways, express, and 

m a il)1................................................................... 664. 5 596. 9 631. 4 579. 1

Motor vehicles2 ................................................. 102. 1 172.9 223. 3 299. 4

Inland waterways, including Great

Lakes3 ............................................................... 146. 7 163. 3 216. 5 223. 0

Pipelines4 ............................................................... 105. 2 129. 2 203. 2 228. 6

Airways (domestic revenue service), 

including express, m ail5 and express 

b a g g a g e * ......................................................; . . 2 • 31 . 5 . 8

1 Ton-m iles of revenue freight, express, and mail of all classes of line-haul railroads and electric railways are covered. Switching is not included. Data are based 

on reports of carriers to the Interstate Commerce Commission, plus some data from 

the Post Office Department.

2 The highway ton-m iles cover all operations, for-hire and private, common and 

contract, between cities and between cities and rural areas, but not between rural 

areas without passing through cities and not city delivery or city movements to and 

from contiguous suburbs. Turnpike movements are included beginning with 1940 (the 

year of the opening of the Pennsylvania Turnpike). Highway ton-m iles estimated on 

the basis of Bureau of Public Roads data for main and local rural roads, mileages of 

routes in rural and urban areas, and on Department of Agriculture data on farm consumption. P assenger-m iles in private automobiles estimated on basis of data from 

the Bureau of Public Roads on rural and intercity travel and from average load data. 

As processing of certain data is not complete, highway estimates herein for I960 should 

be regarded as preliminary. Alaska and Hawaii are included in I960, therefore, these 

figures are not comparable with data for previous years. Schoolbus data are excluded.

3 All ton-m iles on the Intracoastal Waterways, Great Lakes, inland rivers, etc. 

are included, but no deep-sea cargo movements except those portions moving within 

domestic waters of the United States enroute to overseas ports. In 1948, 1951, 1953 

and 1954, there were additions of ton-miles on waterways not previously covered, which 

produced a relatively small lack of comparability in coverages.

For various reasons, including the extreme circuity, these figures do not include 

deep-sea coastwise of intercoastal movements of domestic traffic.

4 Oil movements through pipelines are included whether or not these pipelines are 

regulated by the Interstate Com m erce Commission, Crude, product, and gathering lines 

are covered. Data are from reports to the Interstate Com m erce Commission, from 

the Bureau of Mines, and from other sources.

5 Based on Civil Aeronautics Board statistics, Federal Aviation Agency Surveys, 

and other data. Ton-miles by airway are limited to those in domestic revenue service of certified and noncertified and/or supplemental carriers, except movements over 

international waters or foreign countries. Movements by private plane are not included, nor are such "local delivery" operations as crop dusting.

Alaska and Hawaii are included in I960, therefore, these figures are not com ­

parable with data for previous years.

Note: Because of rounding, sums of individual items may not equal totals.

Source: Intercity Ton-Miles, 1939-1959 (interstate Commerce Commission, Bureau of Transport Economics and Statistics), April 1961, table 1; 75th Annual Report 

of the Interstate Commerce Commission, fiscal year ended June 30, 1961, p. 15.

RAILROAD INDUSTRY 5

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billion (chart 3.) and as a share of total 

intercity p a s s e n g e r -m ile s , fr o m 8 p e r ­

cent to le ss than 3 percent. Meanwhile, 

the share carried by private automobiles increased from about 84 percent 

to m ore than 90 percent and by air 

c a r r ie r s , fr o m 2 p ercen t to m ore than 

4 p erce n t.4

In contrast with the longrun rise 

in the volume of railroad freight traffic since the turn of the century (excluding the 1930*s), freight traffic leveled off following its peak in World War 

II but has continued to fluctuate c y c ­

lically. 5 The trend in the volum e of 

freight traffic carried by railroads and 

other modes of transport is indicated 

in the preceding tabulation of data p repared by th e Interstate Com m erce 

Com m ission.

Railroad employment in the 1947- 

1960 period was also affected by various 

operating econom ies introduced by 

management. Employment was reduced 

by measures such as lower expenditures f o r roadway and structures 

maintenance, abandonment of branch 

l i n e s in s o m e areas and closing of 

small freight stations in others, and 

introduction of centralized traffic control on lines carrying dense traffic. 

On some lines, passenger service was 

curtailed o r discontinued. In a f e w 

instances railroads were merged.

A m ajor factor affecting em ployment in railroad occupations was the 

widespread inauguration of many tech4Intercity Passenger-M iles, 1949-1956, (interstate Commerce Commission, Bureau of

Transport Economics and Statistics), Jan.

1958, table 1; and 75th Annual Report of the

Interstate Commerce Commission, fiscal year

ended June 30, 19617 p. 15. Comparable data

prior to 1949 are not available.

5For a discussion of the historical trend

of railroad freight and passenger traffic, see

National Transportation Policy, Report of the

Committee on Commerce, U .S. Senate, special Study Group on Transportation Policies

in the United States, 87th Congo., 1st sess0,pt,

II, ch. 4. June 26, 1961.

nological changes. O n e o f the m ost 

radical developments w a s th e almost 

complete replacem ent of the steam 

locomotive by the d i e s e 1 - e le c tr ic 

locomotive. The nature of diesel 

locomotive service requirements permitted lower equipment maintenance 

employment. Reduced locomotive 

maintenance contributed to the con solidation of repair facilities which re ­

sulted in reduced structures maintenance. Diesels also hauled longer, 

heavier trains, thus affecting em ployment in train and engine service and, 

to a le s s e r extent, in other activities 

related to train movement. Extensive 

mechanization, as well as improvements in m aterials and in methods of 

utilizing mechanical equipment and 

manpower in road and track maintenance occupations, drastically curtailed unskilled and semiskilled labor requirements. Clerical employment was reduced by increasing use of 

a variety of m odern office m achines and 

equipment and, in recent years, the 

application of electron ic data-proce ss - 

ing methods to railroad accounting and 

statistical systems. The rapid spread 

of radio, teletype, Centralized Traffic 

Control (CTCj, and other advanced 

signaling and communication equipment 

affected railroad employment generally. 

L abor savings were also achieved 

through the consolidation of station 

accounting functions, increasing use of 

produ ction -lin e methods of equipment 

maintenance, relocation of track to 

minimize roadway grades and curves 

(the reby reducing the number of l o c o ­

motives needed on particular runs, and 

track maintenance requirem ents), m ore 

efficient freight handling and shipment, 

and other m ajor improvements in op erating methods. Other innovations 

which contributed to changes in manpower requirements included welded 

rails, automatic car-weighing devices, 

quick-drying and spray paints, increased capacity of freight ca rs, and 

more powerful locom otives.

The postwar spread of technological 

innovations on the railroad s entailed a 

high annual level of real capital investment fro m 1946 to I960, a level significantly higher than in the preceding

6 EMPLOYMENT AND CHANGING OCCUPATIONAL PATTERNS

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two d e c a d e s .6 In current p r ic e s , capital expenditures by C lass I railroad s 

between 1946 and i960 averaged more 

than $ 1 billion annually.7

The effects of technological change, 

and a number of other interrelated i n ­

fluences, such as employee and management skills and effort, on railroad operations were indicated in the m ore than 70 

percent increase in output per production worker man-hour in railroad transportation between 1947 and 196Q this gain 

was la r g e r than in m ost other industries.8

Changes in Occupational Structure

The postwar decrease in railroad 

employment affected all m ajor railroad 

occupational groups, although some 

were affected much m ore severely than 

others (chart 4). For example, the 

large number of em ployees engaged in 

maintenance operations f e l l by m o r e 

than half over the 1947-60 period as a 

whole. In contrast, the relatively sm all 

numbers of executives, officials, and 

staff assistants dropped only slightly 

and the number of p rofession a ls, subprofessionals, and agents declined 

moderately.

D ifferences in the postwar rate of 

employment declines among railroad 

occupational groups resulted in some 

shifting in their proportional distribution. For example, train, engine, and 

yard (operating) em ployees becam e the 

largest single occupational group, 

moving up from 22.7 p e r c e n t of al l 

Class 1 line-haul railroad em ployees 

in 1947 to 27. 1 in I960. Em ploym ent 

in the w h ite-collar group rose from 

about 16 percent to 20 percen t over the 

same period. On the other hand, the 

proportion of railroad employment in 

maintenance occupations dropped from 

47 percent to less than 39 percent.

Em ploym ent trends among the o c c u ­

pational groups were varied (chart 5). 

There was a fairly steady decline from 

1947 to 1960 among freight and passenger terminal em ployees and other railroad em ployees classified in the o ccu ­

pational group "Transportation (other 

than train, engine, and y ard)." Among 

maintenance em ployees, the decline a ccelerated during the latter years of the 

period. In contrast, employment of 

executives, officials, and staff assistants increased slightly through the m idI950*s, but then declined.

Cutbacks in railroad employment 

generally were most severe among 

those persons in jobs requiring relatively little skill or training. Thus, the 

less skilled workers such as gangmen, 

laborers, truckers, and loaders, as 

well as helpers, apprentices, and em ­

ployees engaged in routine clerical 

functions generally experienced proportionately much greater employment declines than craftsmen, supervisors, 

managers, and professionals. This 

disparity was largely due to the w idespread replacement of less skilled labor 

by mechanical and electronic equipment, and the consolidation of railroad 

facilitie s.

6 Capital expenditures from 1925 through

1949, Association of American Railroads,

Bureau of Railway Economics, subsequent

ye ar s , (interstate Commerce Commission,

Bureau of Transport Economics and Statistics). Real value of capital expenditures obtained by deflating expenditures with The

Railroad Construction Index compiled by the

Interstate Commerce Commission, Bureau of

Accounts.

7 More than $16 billion was spent on railroad capital equipment over this period. Approximately $5.5 billion was spent for new

freight cars, $4.2 billion for new motive

power, $900 million for new passenger-train

cars, $700 million for modern traffic control

and communications systems, and the remainder for new roadway machines, improvements to stations and track, and other

modernization projects. Background on

Transportation, News Service, Association

of American Railroads, May 19, 1961.

8 Output measured both in terms of total

revenue traffic and car-m iles, on Class I

railroads and Class I switching and terminal

companies. Indexes of Output Per Man-Hour

fo r Selected Industries, 1939 and 1947-60,

Annual Industry Series, (U. S. Department of

Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Dec.

1961).

RAILROAD INDUSTRY

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E m p loym en t (in th ou san ds) P e rce n t ch a n ge2

1947 1955 I960 1947-60 1947-55 1955-60

O ccu pa tion a l g ro u p 1

N u m ber P e rce n t N um ber P e rce n t N u m ber P e rce n t

T otal e m p l o y e e s ........................................ 1, 352 100. 0 1, 058 100. 0 781 100. 0 -4 2 -2 2 -2 6

M ain ten ance o f equipm ent

and sto r e s .................................................. . . 370 27. 4 273 25. 8 184 23. 6 -5 0 -2 6 -3 3

M a in te n a n ce -o f-w a y and

stru ctu re s ................................................... . . 265 1 9.6 197 18. 6 119 15. 2 -5 5 -2 6 -4 0

T ra n sp o rta tio n (oth er than

tra in , en gin e, and y a rd ) . . . . . . 172 12. 7 127 12. 0 91 11.7 -4 7 -2 6 -2 8

T ra n sp o rta tio n (train,

en gin e, and y a rd ) .............................. . . 307 22. 7 250 23. 6 212 27. 1 -3 1 -1 9 -1 5

C l e r i c a l............................................................ . . 163 12. 1 138 13. 0 111 14. 2 -3 2 -1 5 -2 0

P ro fe s s io n a ls , s u b p r o fe ss io n a ls ,

and a g e n t s .................................................. . . 36 2. 7 35 3. 3 32 4. 1 - 10 - 3 - 9

E x e cu tiv e s, o ffic ia ls , and

staff a s s i s t a n t s ................................... . . 15 I. 1 16 1. 5 15 1.9 - 1 + 6 - ^

M isce lla n e o u s s e r v i c e s ......................... . . 24 1. 8 22 2. 1 17 2. 2 -2 7 - 7 -2 2

1 In terstate C o m m e rc e C o m m issio n o ccu p a tion a l divi sion s (cla s s ifica tio n s ) w e re grou p ed by B u reau o f L ab or S ta tistics.

2 P e rce n ta g e ch an ges com p u ted fr o m unrounded n u m b ers.

Note: B eca u se of rou n din g, su m s o f in dividu al ite m s m a y not add to tota ls.

S ou rce: T ra n sp o rt S ta tistics in the United S ta tes, 1947, 1955, and I960, (Interstate C o m m e rc e C o m m issio n , B u reau o f T ra n sp o rt E c o n o m ics

and S ta tis tics ), P t. I, table 69.

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Chart 5* Railroad Employment in Selected

Occupational Groups, 1947-60

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OP LABOR 

BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS

* Includes the following occupational categories: executives, off Idols, and staff

assistants-, professionals, subprafessionats, and agents^ and clerical personnelSource: Interstate Commerce Commission; Bureau of tabor Statistics.

RAILROAD INDUSTRY 9

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Although persons with more skill 

and training generally were less 

affected by technological developments 

and changes in the volume of railroad 

activity, employment was substantially 

reduced in some skilled occupations 

s u c h as b o i l e r m a k e r , blacksmith, 

machinist, painter, and carpenter. On 

the other hand, skilled electrical 

workers (A);9 m ason s, b rick la y e rs, 

and plasterers; and chief telegraphers 

and some other supervisory cla ssifica ­

tions were among the few railroad o c ­

cupations that had higher employment 

in 1960 than in 1947.

Maintenance

M ore than half of the postwar decline in railroad employment occurred 

among maintenance personnel, whose 

numbers dwindled from 635, 000 in 1947 

to 303, 000 in I960. Of these, about 3 

out of e v ery 5 were engaged in the 

maintenance of equipment and stores, 

which includes the upkeep and repair 

of locom otives, freight and passenger 

cars and other wheeled vehicles, and 

related equipment; and the warehous9 Occupational titles for electrical workers

as well as for carmen and clerical personnel

include the alphabetical designations A, B, C,

or D to indicate differences in types of work

performed or in levels of skill in these classifications. Most workers classified as Electrical workers (a ) a r e skilled equipment

maintenance personnel. Electrical workers

(B) primarily are employed in power stations

and substations in skilled occupations such as

load dispatcher and station operator* Electrical workers (C) work mainly as operators

of electric hoist or conveyor equipment'at

coal, ore, or grain docks and storage facilities. Carmen (A and B) work principally

on passenger car equipment and Carmen (C

and D) principally on freight car equipment.

Personnel classified as Clerks and clerical

specialists (a ) mainly have professional or

supervisory responsibilities; Clerks (B and

C) mainly do routine work.

1 0 The number of passenger-train cars in

service (Class I and II railroads and switching and terminal companies) dropped from

about 39, 000 in 1947 to 26, 000 in I960; the

number of f r e i g h t-carrying cars generally

was about 1.75 million through 1958 but, by

1960, had declined by almost 7 0, 000. Transport Statistics in the United States, op. cit. ,

table 155, p. 103.

The analysis that follows deals with 

changes in employment in the 128 

standard ICC railroad occupational divisions (classifications). To permit 

m ore meaningful discussion of these 

changes, the classifications were 

grouped into five broad categories of

railroad employment: Maintenance em ­

ployees; transportation employees 

(other than train, engine, and yard); 

transportation employees (train, engine, and yard); white-collar em ployees 

and m iscellaneous service em ployees.

Employees

ing of parts and supplies. The re ­

mainder were m aintenance-of-way and 

structures employees who maintain 

roadways, bridges, buildings, and 

other structures and install and m aintain signal and communications systems 

and related control devices.

Equipment and Stores

In 1960, the number of em ployees 

engaged in maintenance of equipment 

and stores was only half that in 1947. 

Although reductions in the number of 

ca rs in s e r v ic e 10 played an important 

part in the vast curtailment of equipment maintenance employment, the 

conversion from steam to d ie s e l-e le c ­

tric locom otives was the key factor. 

nNot only did the d ie se l-e le ctric lo c o ­

m otive require less serv ice but as _the 

result of its greater availability ^/because of lower service requirements^, 

fewer units were required to handle 

the same amount of tr a ffic .” 11 T h e

ir Statement of Michael Fox, President,

Railway Employees Department, AFL-CIO ,

in Impact of Automation on Employment,

Committee on Education and Labor, House of

Representatives, 87th Cong. , 1st s e s s .,

1961, p. 294.

The number of locomotives in service declined 30 percent from 1947 to I960. In 1947,

84 percent of locomotives were steam driven

and 14 percent were diesel powered. In 1960,

97 percent of the locomotives were diesel and

less than 1 percent were steam driven. Yearbook of Railroad Information, 1961 edition,

Eastern Railroad Presidents Conference,

Jersey City, N. J. , p. 8.

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Layout of modern diesel maintenance shop facilitates

work of machinists, electricians, and other equipment

maintenance employees.

lower service requirements of the diesel also permitted the consolidation 

of shop facilities and the application of p r o d u c t i o n - l i n e m e t h o d s 

to equipment s e r v ic in g .12 In recent 

years, equipment maintenance employment has also been affected by the 

practice of some railroads of sending 

diesel engines requiring major overhaul back to the manufacturer for r e ­

building or exchange for more highly 

powered new, or rebuilt, units.

Part of the decline in equipment 

maintenance employment may also be 

traced to many diverse, relatively 

small, but cumulatively significant im ­

12 One example of the impact of lower service requirements on maintenance employment is the experience of the Santa Fe Railroad which, in 1946, maintained 26 shops for

repairing locomotives and cars, 7 for wheel

repair, and 4 for repairing passenger cars.

By 1961, repair facilities had been reduced to

one m ajor diesel shop and five diesel shops

for minor repairs, one shop for passenger

car and equipment repair, one wheel shop,

and one major freight car repair shop, with

three other locations serving as minor car

repair depots. "Springfield Becomes Shop

C enter," Modern Railroads. Chicago, Nov.

1961, pp. 80-81.

provements in maintenance equipment, 

m aterials, and methods. These included specialized p a i n t s and s p r a y 

painting methods; improved bearings 

and bearing lubrication; better inventory 

control and materials-handlingmethods; 

improved manual and automatic welding 

techniques; and ultrasonic, isotopic, 

spectrographic, and other advanced 

analytical techniques to determine m etal wear or fatigue. The use of automatic machines to perform specialized 

operations, such as machining and assembling of car wheel sets, also has 

cut man-hour requirements.

Changing technology not only contributed importantly to employment declines in almost every skilled equipment maintenance occupation but, in 

the p rocess, often altered job content 

and skills. Changes in the number em ­

ployed in these occupations from 1947 

to I960 are shown in the following tabulation:

ICC Occupation Employment Percent change

Div. ---------------------------------------------------- -----------------------------------------

No. 1947 1955 1960 1947-60 1947-55 1955-6

Total . ..................................... 169,858 145, 185 11 1, 205 -3 5 -1 5 -23

54 B lacksm iths......................... 5, 841 3, 375 1,956 -67 -42 -4 2

55 B o ile r m a k e r s .................... 13, 128 4, 310 2, 341 -8 2 -67 -46

56 Carm en (A and B ' 1 . . . 20,341 18,212 12, 425 -39 -10 -3 2

57 Carm en (C and D) . . . 56,181 58, 786 4 6,006 - 18 + 5 -2 2

58 E lectrical w orkers (A ). 10,423 : 5, 430 * 6 0 2 + 30 + 48 -1 2

59- E lectrical workers

60 (B and C )2 .................... 3, 079 2, 415 1,893 -39 -22 -2 2

61 M a c h in is t s ......................... 47, 357 31, 621 24, 699 -48 -33 -2 2

62 Molder s ................................... 569 171 106 -81 -70 -38

63 Sheet-m etal worker* . . 11,259 9, 298 7, 156 -3 6 - 17 -23

73 Stationary engineers . . 1,680 1, 567 1, 021 -39 - 7 -3 5

1 Includes an indeterminate number of gasoline m otor-car repairmen.

E lectrical workers (C) include an indeterminate sm all number of sem iskilled

electrical equipment operators. The " C " group as a whole had only a few hundred em ployees.

Rapid replacement of locomotive 

steam power by diesel-electric power 

was central to the very large reduction in boilermakers’ employment. 

The number of blacksmiths also declined, partly because of the industrywide use of replacement parts for diesel 

locom otiv es, in contrast with the p r a c ­

tice of repairing or reconstructing 

components for steam locom otives. 

Improvements in heat-treating, welding, 

and forging methods, and in related 

equipment, were also important factors 

contributing to the decrease. Technological change also contributed to the 

sizable reduction in employment of m achinists, one o f the largest of the 

skilled railroad shop trades. These 

changes included different and lower 

maintenance requirements T o r diesels 

com pared with steam locom otiv es, the

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introduction of production-line servicing 

methods, and im provem ents in machine 

shop equipment, including some with 

automatic controls. The extent of th e 

employment decline among machinists 

would have been even greater had it not 

been for an increase in maintenance 

work resulting from the very large 

amount of track and roadway equipment purchased by the railroads since 

World War II. Reduced employment 

o f stationary engineers reflected the 

introduction o f automatic controls on 

shop b oilers, although the drop in the 

total number of shop facilities was also 

important. The number of electrical 

w orkers (B), a group which includes 

power station and substation operators 

and load dispatchers, declined as dieselelectric locom otives were substituted 

for n s t r a i g h t - e l e c t r ic 1' locom otiv es, 

which depend on externally generated 

power.

Electrical workers (a ) com prised 

the only classification in equipment 

maintenance to show an increase in 

employment over the 1947-60 period 

as a whole. A ll of this in crea se, however, was due to the large expansion 

through the early 1950*s in the number 

of these em ployees needed to maintain 

the extensive electric power and control 

equipment on the m ushroom ing fleet of 

d ie s e l-e le c tr ic locom otiv es. 1 ^ In r e ­

cent years, employment o f electrical 

workers (a ) has dropped somewhat because of the decline in the number of 

trains run, the growing experience with 

diesel maintenance, lower maintenance 

requirements of later model diesels,

^ 3 From 1947 to 1955 the number of diesels

increased more than fourfold--from 5, 772 to

24,786; between 1955 and I960, the increase

was only 14 percent. Yearbook of Railroad

Information, op. cit. , p. 8.

14Advancing technology in roadway and

structures' operations on the railroads gene rally paralleled developments in the construction industry, notably in highway construction. ’’Increasing use and efficiency of

roadbuilding equipment, particularly in grading and surfacing, was the prime cause of

the 47-percent decline in on-site labor requirements for highways from 1947 to 1958."

"Labor Requirements for Highway Construction," Monthly Labor Review, Aug. 1961,

859.

and increased specialization of work in 

larger, consolidated maintenance facilities.

Employment of carm en, the largest 

occupational classification among 

equipment maintenance employees, was 

affected generally by technological 

changes such as improved welding and 

new joining and fastening techniques, 

and modernized materials-handling 

equipment. The severe drop in passenger traffic relative to freight traffic 

from 1947 to I960, however, affected 

occupations within the carmen group 

differently. Thus, the number of c a r ­

men (A and B), m ost of whom maintain 

railroad passenger cars, fell 39 p e rc e n t - m o r e than twice the decline for 

carm en (C and D), m ost of whom m aintain freight cars.

Those in unskilled and sem iskilled 

equipment maintenance j o b s - - l a b o r e r s , 

helpers, and apprentices--had much 

greater employment declines than 

craftsm en, forem en, and other skilled 

equipment maintenance employees, as 

shown in the following tabulation:

ICC Occupational group Employment Percent change

Div. _____________

No. 1947 1955 1966 1947-60 1947-55 ” 955-60

T o t a l................................. 370,287 273, 155 184, 006 -50 -26 -33

50, 51 General, assistant gen-eral,

and department foremen. 9, 323 8, 296 7, 150 -23 - 11 - 14

52, 53, Gang foremen, leaders

68,69 and inspectors. . .

54-63, Skilled trades

13,655 11,494 8, 573 -37 -16 -25

73 journeymen1. . . .

64-66, Skilled trades helpers

169,858 145,185 1 11,205 -35 -15 -23

74 and apprentices . .

67, Classified and general

98,877 56,052 26,006 -7 4 -43 -5 4

70-72 laborers . . . . . 78, 574 52, 128 31,072 -60 -3 4 -40

1 Includes an indeterminate small number of semiskilled electrical equipment operators

in ICC Div. No. 60, Electrical Workers (C).

Way and Structures

Postwar employment o f personnel 

who maintain railroad way and structures dropped by 55 percent, the g reatest relative decline among m ajor railroad occupational g r o u p s . * 14 * As the

ICC

Div.

No.

Occupational group Employment Pei•cent change

1947 1955 1960 1947-60 1947-55 1955-60

T o t a l.......................................... . 264,816 196,980 118,516 -55 -26 -40

27 Roadmasters, general

foremen, and

assistants............................. 3, 147 3, 359 3, 366 + 7 + 7 + (')

28 Inspectors ............................. 1, 132 1, 004 879 -22 -11 -12

35-38, Roadway maintenance

40-42 workers ............................. . 207,439 143, 345 78,355 -62 -31 -45

29-34 Bridge and building

. 30,366 27,311 17,764 -42 - 10 -35

44-49 Signal and telegraph

workers ............................. 19, 429 16,848 - 11 + 3 -13

39,43 Laborer crews (bridge

and building; signal

and telegraph)................... 3, 857 2, 532 1, 304 -66 -3 4 -49

1 Less than 1 percent.

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preceding tabulation shows, almost ninetenths of the decrease was among roadway maintenance employees, who com ­

prise the great m ajority of all way and 

structures employees.

Roadway m aintenance. Em ploym ent 

in this occupational category fell principally because of two factors: (l) the

volume of maintenance decreased as 

track m ileage was reduced and as the 

recurring cycle of rail and tie renewal 

and other m ajor maintenance operations 

were lengthened through technological

73 Transport Statistics in the United States,

op. cit. , 1947, I960" tables 92 and 93.-------

6 M The transition from 112 pound rail //per

yard_J7 to 131 pound rail reduced the annual

maintenance man-hours per mile per year

from 1,103.4 to 902.6, or 18 p ercent/from

1943 to 1950_J7." William Haber, et al, op.

c it., p. 40. With the shift toward heavier

rail, the average weight of rail in main

tracks on Class I line-haul railroads increased from 100 pounds per yard in 1947 to

106 pounds p e r yard in I960. Transport

Statistics in the United State s c i t . ,

1960, table 7.

17 According to an article in Railway Age,

the declines in rail and track renewals in recent years indicate that minimum replacement has occurred in the light of expected

rail and tie service life. "M /W : Moderate

Increase" M. H. Dick, Engineering Editor,

Railway Age, Jan. 16, 1961, pp. 30-32. See

also, "B and O - C and O Officers Stress

Deferred-Maintenance P e r il," Railway Age,

July 17, 1961, pp. 14-18.

18"We have four new push-button classification yards; four yards that replace as many

as 25 o th e r s ..." "The Importance of Technological Change to the Railway Industry,"

Alfred E. Pearlman, President, New York>

Central Railroad, in Technological Change

and the Future of the Railways, op. cit. , p.

19 The installation of CTC increased from

about 10,000 track miles controlled in 1947 to

28, 000 in 1955 and 36, 000 track miles controlled in I960. Transport Statistics in the

United States, op. cit. , 1947, I960j table 8.

With the installation of CTC between Cleveland and Buffalo (distance----- 163 m iles), the

New York Central Railroad was able to eliminate two tracks of a four-track system. New

York Tim es, Feb. 17, 1957, Sec. 3,, p. 1.

CTC also contributed to the paring away of

1, 800 m i l e s of t r a c k on the Pennsylvania

Railroad between late 1953 and 1957. "Slim ­

ming the PR R ," The Pennsy, Pennsylvania

Railroad Co., Phi l ad e l p h i a , Jan.-F-sb^,

1958, p. 10.

im provem ents; a n d (2) manpower r e ­

quirements, principally f o r gangmen, 

were reduced by the widespread introduction of mechanized equipment.

The decline in roadway maintenance 

from 1947 to I960 is clearly apparent in 

the 69-p e rce n t drop in the number of 

m i l e s of r e p l a c e m e n t rail laid by 

C lass I line-haul railroad s and the 62- 

percent decline in the number of r e ­

placement c r o s s tie s put in p l a c e . 15 

The service life of rail was lengthened 

by increasing use of heavier r a il1 6 and 

of better designed rail; heat-treated, 

end-hardened, and special alloyed rail; 

and continuous welded rail in place of 

bolt-joined rail sections. The period 

between installation and replacement 

was extended by the use of better methods of welding to repair battered rail 

ends and other worn rail surfaces. 

Rail and tie damage was reduced by 

im proved roadway surfacing and drainage which created a m ore shockabsorbent roadbed. Greater use of 

longer service "treated” ties contributed to the decrease in tie renewals. 

Improved tie plates, pads, and sealants 

extended tie life by providing better 

distribution of rolling weight on the tie, 

and reduced tie rot and wear. A lso, 

it is reported in a leading railroad industry magazine, that some railroads 

did not effect adequate roadway maintenance p r o g r a m s .17

Elimination of track and roadbed 

also reduced roadway maintenance re ­

quirements. Trackage and roadway on 

abandoned branch lines were uprooted, 

miscellaneous trackage was eliminated 

in areas of declining traffic and trackage was eliminated in many freight 

yards made obsolete by new yards using 

more automatic car classification syst e m s . 18 (F or a description of operations in modern electrically controlled 

car classification yards, see p. 21.)

Retirement of trackage has also been 

accom plished by the increased installation of Centralized Traffic Control 

( C T C ) .19 With this system , a single 

train dispatcher, aided by remote control devices and a continuing view of 

train movements provided by an illum inated track diagram, is able to operate

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signals and switches which direct the 

movement of trains over hundreds of 

miles of railroad. The improved control over train movements provided by 

CTC permits closer spacing of trains 

and results in fewer delays arising out 

of the meeting and passing of trains, 

thus increasing the capacity of specific 

track area to handle trains.

Mechanization was the m ost im p ortant factor in the sharp postwar r e ­

duction in roadway maintenance em ­

ployment. The use of roadway machines for railroad track work is not 

new--m any early versions of machines 

now in use w ere developed in the late 

twenties or early thirties--but m ajor 

changes have been made since the end 

of W orld War II. Substantial investment in roadway equipment20 has p r o ­

vided machines which replace manpower in practically all labor-intensive 

areas of roadway upkeep. nIncluded in 

the equipment of a m odern track gang 

are machines to pull and replace ties, 

drive spikes; gather up and clean track 

ballast, return it to the track; and tamp 

it firm ly to provide a sm ooth-riding 

surface. Still other machines spray 

ch em icals for the control of vegetation 

along the r ig h t -o f-w a y , and use the 

science of electronics to inspect and 

detect flaws in rails before they can 

break and cause an a c c i d e n t . " 21 

M otor vehicles are being used increasingly to carry maintenance c r e w s,

equipment, and machines on highways 

from one track location to another, 

although rail motor cars are still 

widely used. When rail vehicles are 

used, d e l a y s are f r e q u e n t because

2 0Net~investment in roadway machines by

Class I line-haul railroads increased from

$62.5 million at yearend, 1947, to $200.5

million at yearend, I960 (current dollars).

Transport Statistics in the United States, op.

cit. , 1947, 1960, table 138.

21 Curtis D. Buford, Vice President, Operations and Maintenance Department, Association of American Railroads, "New Concepts

in Railroading," address before the Annual

Transportation and Logistics Forum, National Defense Transportation Association, Denver, Colo. , Sept. 19, 1961.

2 2 "Now Most Maintenance Operations Are

Mechanized," Railway Age (Centennial Issue), Sept. 19517] ppl 230-234o

23,1 Revolution on the Steel Highway, " Modern Railroads, Chicago, May 1959, p. 79.

tracks must be cleared for oncoming 

trains. Off-track earth-moving equipment such as bulldozers, graders, 

power shovels, and cranes have becom e 

increasingly available for ditching or 

other excavation or fill work. The 

rapid spread of radio communication 

enables supervisors quickly to check 

with foremen on work progress, and 

minimizes delays in track work by 

keeping crew s posted on the location of 

moving trains.

The effect of mechanization on roadway employment has accelerated since 

the end of W o r 1 d W a r II. Although 

single-purpose machines used early in 

the postwar period made possible 

f a s t e r - t h a n -m a n u a 1 operation a n d 

greatly reduced human effort, im provements in m achines, the introduction of 

multipurpose machines, and the increasing efficiency o f machine operators permitted even greater laborsavings in roadway maintenance work. 

Certain operations, such as taking out 

and inserting ties and raising, tamping, 

and lining track, when perform ed manually, com m only required gangs of 100 

men and, at tim es, as many as 300. 

Today*s mechanized work gangs, com ­

bined f o r production-line handling of 

these operations, may number between 

2 5 and 35 men making use of 8 to 11 

p o w e r m a c h i n e s . 22 "One railroad 

found that a single multipurpose m a ­

chine operated by 1 man, could replace 

6 single-purpose machines and e lim ­

inate about 15 tr a c k m e n ." 23

In addition to its im pact on the number of em ployees in roadway maintenance, mechanization has changed the 

character of employment in such op erations by stimulating the reorganization 

and m ore efficient utilization of the 

roadway work force. Before the use 

of machines and equipment became 

widespread, track and roadway upkeep 

was perform ed by the section gang or 

crew , frequently numbering 30 or m ore 

men. S u c h a g r o u p , equipped with 

manually and pneumatically operated 

hand tools, had full responsibility for 

a limited area of roadway. Extra gangs 

were employed for heavy roadway construction and repair jobs, such as 

m ajor rail- and tie-laying or replace14 EMPLOYMENT AND CHANGING OCCUPATIONAL PATTERNS

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The size of roadway maintenance crews has been reduced sharply with the widespread use of specialized equipment.

ment and surfacing or resurfacing large 

sections of roadway. With mechanization, the trend has been to use specialized gangs in roadway maintenance. 

Large gangs may operate over an entire railroad o r a very large section of 

track. One group may replace ties, 

reline rail, and resurface track, while 

others perform ditching operations at 

the sides of the roadbed, or weld rail 

and lay welded rail. Smaller "floating" 

m echanized gangs of 8 to 12 men a s ­

signed to railroad divisions or subdivisions do necessary maintenance between major roadway renewals, such as 

tamping low spots in the roadbed, r e ­

lining rail, and repairing (welding) rail 

j o i n t s or o t h e r worn rail surfaces. 

"Floating" gangs may be supplemented 

by patrol gangs of two to four men who 

inspect rails, ties, and roadbed, 

tighten rail bolts, and perform other 

miscellaneous light work. The changing structure of roadway maintenance 

employment, particularly as reflected 

in the sharp decline of section w orkers 

and the rapid growth of portable equipment operators, is shown in the follow ­

ing tabulation:

The proposition that mechanization 

has also affected the character of roadw a y maintenance employment by upgrading the average skill level in these 

jobs is "widely recognized" according 

to a definitive study of mainte n a n ce-ofway e m p loy m en t.2 4 The study points 

to the greater time needed by untrained 

workers to learn roadway maintenance 

jobs requiring operation of machines 

and equipment. Evidence of higher 

skill requirements is also cited in 

term s of the large increase between 

1948 and 1955 in the number of portable equipment operators in roadway 

maintenance work.

Although the roadway maintenance 

work force was cut drastically, continuity of employment improved for those 

who remained, partly reflecting railroad efforts to m axim ize the use of expensive capital equipment. For 

exam ple, the average months of service 

of extra gangmen, whose employment is 

particularly erratic, rose fro m about 4.6 

months in 1947 to 6.4 months in 1959. 2 5 *

2 4 W illiam Haber, et al, Maintenance of

Way Employment on U.S. Railroads. 1957,

p. 52.

ICC

Div.

No.

40

42

38

41

35

36

37

Occupation

T o t a l...........................................

Gang or section foremen .

Section gangm en...................

Gang foremen (extra and

work t r a in )........................

Extra g a n g m e n ...................

Portable equipment

operators .............................

Portable equipment

operator helpers. . . .

Pump equipment operators.

Employment Percent change 2 5 Annual Report, Railroad Retirement

1947 1955 1960 1947-60 1947-55 1955-60 Board, 1949, Table E -5, p. 244; 1959 data

207,439

24, 603

123,667

143,345

19,658

84. 585

78,355

10,784

38,248

-62

-56

-69

-31

-20

-32

-45

-45

-55

computed from Compensation and Service of

Railroad Employees, Statistical Tables,

1959, U.S. Railroad Retirement Board, 1961,

4, 095

47,663

2, 912

28,743

3, 152

18,467

-23

-61

-29

-40

+ 8

-36 p. 7 5. A month of service is defined by the

4, 880 6, 291 7, 182 +47 +29 + 14 Board as any calendar month in which an em687

1, 844

738

418

381

141

-45

-92

+ 7

-77

-48

-66

ployee has earnings, no matter how little,

creditable under the Railroad Retirement

Act.

RAILROAD INDUSTRY 15

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Between 1954 and 1959, the proportion 

of extra gangmen who worked 9 months 

or m ore in a year rose from 25 p e r ­

cent to 38 p e r c e n t .26 Average c o m ­

pensated man-hours for these workers 

increased fro m 1, 637 in 1947, with a 

48-hour workweek, to 1,840 in I9 6 0 ,27 

despite a reduction in the workweek to 

40 hours.

Structures m aintenance. E m ployees 

engaged in maintaining bridges, buildings, tunnels, towers, and other railroad structures, constitute another m ajor group of railroad maintenance em ­

ployees. Contraction o f the railroad 

plant that accompanied improvements 

in methods and equipment and the 

abandonment of stations largely accounted for this grou ps sharp employment decline, as shown in the following 

tabulation:

ICC

Div.

No.

Occupation Employment Per cent chang

1947 1955 I960 1947-60 1947-55 1955-60

T o t a l............................ 34,223 29,843 19,068 -44 - 13 -36

29 Gang foremen of

skilled labor................... 4,018 3,818 2, 695 -33 - 5 -29

30 C a r p e n te r s ........................ 13,805 11, 754 7, 144 -48 -15 -39

31 Ironworkers ........................ 964 819 585 -39 -15 -29

32 Painters................................. 2,093 2, 066 915 -56 - 1 -56

33 Masons, bricklayers,

and plasterers* . . . 1,996 2, 554 2, 750 + 38 + 28 + 8

34 Helpers and appren7,490 6, 300 3, 675 -51 - 16 -42

39 Gang foremen of

laborers (bridge and

building; signal and

telegraph)........................ 258 142 90 -65 -32 -37

43 Laborers (bridge and

building; signal and

telegraph)........................ 2, 390 1, 214 -66 -3 4 -49

1 Includes unknown number of

2 Includes unknown number of

maintenance -

mainte nance-

• of-way welders,

of-way welders' helpers.

Uneconomical railroad structures 

were eliminated, to reduce maintenance costs and to save State or local 

property taxes. Many passenger trains 

were discontinued and many passenger 

stations w e r e a b a n d o n e d . 28 Many 

small freight stations were closed, or 

consolidated to serve la rger a r e a s ,29 

partly because improved highways permitted shippers greater accessibility to 

many locations. With dieselization, the 

number of major equipment repair terminals was reduced, fewer structures 

for locomotive maintenance were required, and the extensive facilities that 

provided fuel and water for steam lo co ­

motives were eliminated. Many small 

train control towers were eliminated as 

centralized traffic control systems 

were applied to thousands of m iles of 

heavily traveled rail routes.

Structures maintenance operations 

and employment were reduced in still 

other ways. Increased use was made 

of brick, steel, and other durable m aterials in constructing or altering railroad structures, such as diesel locomotive shops, freight depots, and office buildings. The development of 

h igh -cap acity earth-moving equipment 

made it econom ical to eliminate many 

bridge trestles which needed extensive 

renewal, by earth-filling ditches or 

streams and using steel or concrete 

culvert pipe to ca rry the water through 

the fill. The practice of reinforcing 

bridges to ca rry the constantly in cre a sing weight of larger and m ore pow erful steam locom otives declined with the 

widespread use of diesel locom otives. 

Jointed aerial booms mounted on highway trucks reduced labor requirements 

involved in the erection of bridge or 

building scaffolds or other rigging. 

B r i d g e and b u i l d i n g crews were 

equipped with portable electric generators and air com pressors which enabled 

them to use portable electric tools such 

as chain and circular saws, drills, and 

grinders, and portable pneumatic tools 

such as impact wrenches, jack-ham ­

m ers, and bolt-pullers. Employment 

of ironw orkers was affected by the increasing substitution of welding, bolting, and other improved methods in 

place of riveting, for joining structural

26Data for 1954 from William Haber, et

al, op. cit. , table 5-l(e), p. 135; 1959 data

computed from Compensation and Service of

Railroad Employees, ibid.

27 Transport Statistics in the United States,

°P• c it., 1947, 1960, table 69. Average manhours per year obtained by dividing annual

compensated hours for extra gangmen by the

annual average of " during-the-month" em -

ployme nt.

28A total of "1,244 /"p a s s e n g e r ^ tr a in s

were discontinued by State commissions during the years 1951-56, and 2,466 stations

were abandoned in the same period." National Transportation Policy, op. cit. ,~~p.

350.

29"F rom L1955 to July 31, 1961, 160 /~ma.inly freightJ stations were closed by. ..^ T h e

Southern Pacific CompanyJ7 - -about 140 of

them since Jan. 1958." Report to the P resident by the Emergency Board (Board No.

138L W ash in gton , D. C. , Sept. 15, 1961, p.

16 EMPLOYMENT AND CHANGING OCCUPATIONAL PATTERNS

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m em bers of bridges and buildings. 

Fewer painters were needed as im ­

proved paints and spray-painting equipment decreased painting time and p rovided longer lasting, protective coatings.

Masons, bricklayers, and plasterers 

were the only occupational division 

(classification) to show increased em ­

ployment. T h e rise can b e traced 

partly to the m ore e x t e n s i v e use of 

masonry as a substitute for wood in 

railroad structures, b u t it m a y also 

reflect the inclusion of m aintenance-ofway welders in this occupational cla ssification. 3 0 W elders have becom e increasingly important in track laying and 

repair operations.

Signal and telegraph. These em ployees constitute a third group of m aintenance-of-w ay and structures em ployees. Employment declines in this group 

were much less severe than in other 

occupational groups in m aintenance-of 

way and structures operations. In four 

of the six signal and telegraph c la s s ifications, employment actually showed 

moderate gains until the m i d - 1950*s, 

but then declined. Employment in the 

less-skilled assistants and helpers 

classifications declined throughout the 

1947-60 period, as shown in the follow ­

ing tabulation:

ICC Occupation Employment Percent change

Div. -------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------

No. 1947 1955 I960 1947-60 1947-55 1955-60

T o ta l........................................... 18,875 19,429 16,848 -11 + 3 -13

assistants and inspectors 1, 342

45 Gang foremen . . . . . . . 1,468

46 Signalmen and signal

m aintainers........................ 8,244

47 Linemen and groundmen . 2, 232

48 Assistant signalmen and

signal maintainers . . . 2,447

49 Helpers, signalmen, and

signal maintainers . . . 3, 142

1 Less than 1 percent.

Group employment data for signalmen and signal maintainers and their 

assistants and helpers indicate decreases in employment between 1947 

and I960. These data, however, apparently mask divergent trends within 

these groups. Employment of signalm en--those engaged in installing railroad signals and control d e v ice s--p ro b ­

ably increased through the m i d - 1950*s 

and then tapered off, largely because of 

the greater growth in CTC systems 

during the earlier years of the 1947-60

period. Their employment w a s also 

favorably affected by increased installation of automatic light signals, gates, 

and other warning devices at highway 

crossings, and of electronic control 

equipment in m ajor freight yards, which 

permit m ore automatic and speedier 

cla ssifica tion of freight c a r s . * 31

The number of signal maintainers, 

on the other hand, probably decreased 

over the entire 1947-60 period. E lim ­

ination of many miles of second and 

other main tracks through installation 

of CTC led to the elimination of signals which controlled movement over 

these tracks and to elimination of interlock in g s32 at the occasion al junctions 

of two or m ore parallel main tracks. 

With the expansion of CTC and the 

abandonment of branch lines, the number of m iles of track (primarily single 

track) controlled by nonautomatic block 

signals was reduced considerably. In 

addition, there was a growing use of 

electrically actuated switches and signals, using relatively few moving 

parts, and a sharp reduction in the 

number of mechanical switch and signal controls which had complicated 

linkage requiring much greater maintenance.

The number of linemen and groundmen rose over the postw ar period as a 

whole. These men, who string and 

la y power cable and communications 

lines at and between railroad term inals, shops, power-generating and 

switching stations, and other railroad 

facilities, were needed for new installations and modifications of existing 

ones as railroads modernized their 

plant and operations. For example,

3 ° ^ u l e s Governing the Classification of

Railroad Employees, etc. , op cit. , p. 21.

31 According to >1 tabulation, 32 electronically controlled freight classification yards

were in service between 1949 and 1959 and 2

others were slated to be put into service by

1960. See Frank E. Shaffer, "Rundown on

Automation," Trains Magazine, March 1961,

pp. 22-23.

3 2 An interlocking is a complex of switches

and signals governing the movement over

switches arranged to avoid conflicting train

moveme nts.

1, 547 1, 551 + 16 + 15 + ( )

1, 624 1, 581 + 8 + 11 - 3

8, 754 7,889 - 4 + 6 -10

2, 863 2, 462 + 10 +28 - 14

2, 403 1, 776 -27 - 2 -26

2, 238 1, 589 -49 -29 -29

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there was widespread consolidation of 

equipment maintenance facilities and 

installation of various types of com ­

munications equipment. In recent 

years, however, employment of linemen and groundmen has been declining 

with the contraction of railroad plant 

and improvements in technology. 

Examples of such technological developments are nc a r r ie r n equipment which

perm its the sending of many m essages 

over a single w ire, the aerial boom 

which facilitates work on overhead construction, the t r u c k-m ounted power 

auger which speeds the digging of holes 

for line poles, and m icrowave radio 

transmission equipment which displaces

telephone, telegraph, and other wired

communications systems.

Transportation Employees (Other Than Train, Engine, and Yard)

The number of em ployees at freight 

and passenger term inals, train control 

and communication centers, signal control towers along the right-of-w ay, and 

aboard dining and parlor cars of passenger trains declined from 172, 000 to 

9 1 ,0 0 0 -- o r 47 p e r c e n t--b etw een 1947 

and i960. M ore than half of the red u ction in this group occurred among railroad em ployees who load and unload 

cars and weigh, check, a n d inspect 

freight at freight stations, and who 

operate barges, ferries, and tugboats. 

Employment reductions among em ­

ployees at freight stations and aboard 

v e sse ls are shown in the following tabulation:

ICC Occupation Employment Percent change

Div. ------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------

No. 1947 1955 1960 1947-60 1947-55 1955-60

T o t a l................................................ 89, 643 59,885 43,013 -52 -33 -28

78 Station agents (supervisory,

2, 288 2, 164 1,970 -14 - 5 - 9

79 Station agents (nontelegraphers, smaller

stations) 1 .................................. 4, 957 4, 350 3, 225 -35 -12 -26

80 Station agents (telegraphers

and telephoners)1. . . . . 14, 100 13,067 10,738 -24 - 7 -18

88-89 General foremen and

assistants (freight

stations, warehouses,

docks, and grain

e l e v a t o r s )............................. 587 578 471 -20 - 2 -19

90 Gang foremen (freight

stations, etc. ) ................... 3, 027 2, 798 2, 196 -27 - 8 -22

91 'C allers, loaders, scalers,

and perishable-freight

inspectors.................................. 17,375 12,742 9, 139 -47 -27 -28

92 Truckers (stations, warehouses, platforms) . . . 34, 009 12,997 7, 018 -79 -62 -46

93-94 Laborers (coal and ore

docks, stations, warehouses, platforms, and

grain elevators)................... 6, 906 6, 033 4, 764 -31 -13 -21

98 Officers, workers and

attendants on barges,

ferries, towing vessels,

etc................................................. 6, 394 5, 156 3,492 -45 -19 -32

1 Includes some station agents at passenger stations

Employment at small freight terminals 

fell and many terminals were closed 

with the drastic decline in less-thancarload freight traffic (from 22. 6 m il33 Transport Statistics in the United States,

op. cit. 7 1947," 1960, table 46.

lion tons in 1947 to 3. 2 m illion tons in 

I960),33 and the considerable shift in 

handling of mail to competing modes of 

transportation.

Substantially reduced numbers of 

truckers, loaders, checkers, and other 

em ployees at freight terminals also re ­

flected such developments as the r e o r ­

ganization of workflow; the widespread 

use of chain and belt conveyor systems 

and lift trucks and other powered veh icles; and the increasing installation 

of communications equipment. The introduction of mechanized m ail-sorting 

systems in some terminals also re ­

duced employment needs.

Personnel who provide services to 

railroad passengers also suffered severe reductions in employment, mainly 

because of the steep drop in postwar 

railroad passenger travel. Other reasons were the introduction of snackbar 

food service on passenger trains and 

the installation of electronic passenger 

reservation systems on some roads. 

Employment declines were especially 

large for laundry workers and for waiters, chefs, stewards, and others w orking on dining and parlor cars, as shown 

in the following tabulation:

ICC

Div.

No.

Occupation Employment Percent chang e

1947 1955 I960 1947-60 1947-55 1955-60

T o ta l...................................... 37,714 27, 780 18,723 -50 -26 -33

84 Station masters and

a ssistan ts............................. 430 408 296 -31 - 5 -27

85-86 Supervising baggage agents

and a ssistan ts................... 483 496 3 56 -26 + 3 -28

87 Baggage, parcel room,

and station attendants . 9,035 9, 016 6, 080 -33 - ( ‘ ) -33

12 Ticket agents and

assistan ts............................. 1, 274 1, 076 692 -46 -16 -36

95 Stewards and dining car

supervisors • • • . . . 1,857 1, 366 880 -53 -26 -36

96 Chefs and cooks . . . . 5, 610 3, 481 2, 276 -59 -38 -35

97 W aiters............................ 13,975 7, 875 4,910 -65 -44 -38

100-10 1 Parlor car conductors

and train attendants . . 4, 422 3, 596 2,979 -33 -19 -17

104 Laundry workers and

forem en.................................. 623 466 254 -60 -26 -45

1 Less than 1 percent.

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One train dispatcher, operating a centralized traffic control board, guides the movement of trains over many miles

of railroad.

The telegraphers (other than chief 

telegraphers), telephoners, towermen, 

dispatchers, and other workers directlyengaged in conrolling train movements 

and handling communications at and between terminals were other nonoperating transportation employees whose 

num bers d e c re a se d , a s shown below :

ICC Occupation Employment Percent change

No. 1947 1955 1960 1947-60 1947-55 1955-60

T o t a l........................................... 29,976 28, 557 22,577 -2 5 - 5 -21

75 Chief train dispatchers. . 994 1, 094 997 +(*) + 10 - 9

76 Train dispatchers . . . . 3, 210 3, 105 2, 536 -21 - 3 -18

77 Train d ir e c to r s ................... 152 210 374 + 146 +38 +78

81 Chief telegraphers . . . . 925 1, 111 1, 156 +2 5 +20 + 4

82 Clerk telegraphers and

telephoners . . . . . . 10,029 9,053 6, 555 -3 5 -10 -28

83 Telegraphers, telephoners, and towermen* 14,666 14, 004 10,959 -2 5 - 5 -22

1 Less than 1 percent.

to operate "at-site" switch and signal 

controls.

The extensive introduction of CTC 

had its greatest employment impact 

among train-control employees with 

lower levels of responsibility. Thus, 

the rate of employment decline among 

telegraphers, telephoners, towermen, 

and clerk telegraphers, who make up 

the great m ajority of all train -control 

personnel, was significantly greater 

than that for train dispatchers. In 

some instances, train dispatchers were 

assigned to the handling of remotely 

controlled switches and s ig n a ls ,34

With the widespread introduction of 

automatically controlled and of rem otely controlled switches and signals (including those remotely controlled under 

CTC system s), few er t r a i n -c o n t r o 1 

workers were employed to provide 

written orders to train personnel and

34". .. the carrier /^Southern Pacific Company J7 has consistently manned these CTC

systems with train dispatchers and progressively abolished telegrapher positions in CTC

territory where trains no longer move under

train ord ers." Report to the President by

the Emergency Board, op. cit. , p. 11.

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whereas under the decentralized sy stem displaced by CTC, telegraphers 

or towerm en controlled s w i t c h -sign al 

layouts or issued train orders under 

the direction of dispatchers.

At railroad communications centers, 

employment of telegraphers and telephoners declined because of the expanded use of improved communications 

equipment, such as teletype and carrier 

system s. On the other hand, there was 

an increase in the number of chief telegraphers (wire chiefs), who supervise 

activities at communications centers.

Dieselization and declining train 

m iles were other factors in the downtrend in train control employment. 

Because higher powered diesel locom otives perm itted the hauling of longe r , heavier trains without the need for 

helper engines, related train control 

activities were reduced. Also, dieselpowered trains did not need to stop for 

refueling or for taking on water, or for 

setting and releasing retaining valves 

(auxiliary braking devices) on steep 

slopes, "thus reducing the number of 

train orders required and permitting 

the closing of intermediate telegraph 

offices which were maintained mainly 

for train ord er p u r p o s e s ." 35 D rastic

Train, Engine,and

The decline in the number of operating em ployee s - - those engaged in train 

and engine service over the road and at 

term inals--w as closely linked not only 

to reductions in the number of passenger and freight trains, but also to technological developments. The most im ­

portant development was the diesele lectric locom otive. In addition, faster 

movement and fewer delays of cars and 

trains resulted from better signal and 

control devices, extensive use of com ­

munications equipment, and im provements affecting freight car components 

such as roller bearings, bearing lubrication pads, and structural fram ew ork .

Report to the President by the Emergen

cy Board, op. cit. , p. 12.

36 ibid.

r e d u c t i o n in t he n u m b e r of m ailcarrying trains and "establishment by 

the United States P ost Office Department of a m etropolitan distribution system, which brought about elimination of 

intermediate passenger train stops between the centralized mail distribution 

centers," resulted in the elimination "at 

intermediate stations [ o ij a number of 

station duties of te le g r a p h e r s."36

Reductions in employment also o c ­

curred among employees who generally 

assist in the m ovement of freight and 

passenger traffic.

ICC Occupation Employment Percent change

D i v . ------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------

No. 1947 1955 I960 1947-60 1947-55 1955-60

99 Transportation and dining

service inspectors . . . 806 778 666 -17 - 3 -1 4

102 Bridge operators and

h e lp e r s .................................. 1,016 1, 049 939 - 8 + 3 -10

103 Crossing and bridge

flagmen and gatemen . . 12, 996 8, 559 4,647 -6 4 -3 4 -4 6

The number of crossing and bridge 

flagmen (watchmen) and gatemen was 

considerably reduced by widespread installation of automatic gates, signal 

lights, and other warning devices at 

highway crossings. Fewer flagmen 

were needed also because of the d ra stic decline in the number of highway 

crossings without gates but with watchmen protection.

Yard Employees

Despite the fact that the engine crew 

(engineer and fireman) and the train 

crew (conductor and brakeman) generally work together as an operating unit, 

engine service em ployees had a greater 

relative employment decline.

ICC Type of service Employment Percent change

D i v . ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

No. 1947 1955 I960 1947-60 1947-55 1955-60

111-120 Train service ....................... 172,287 146,072 124,540 -28 -15 -15

121-128 Engine s e r v i c e ................... 117, 733 89,469 74,982 -36 -24 - 16

The disparity may be traced to the 

rapid replacem ent of the steam lo c o ­

motive by the diesel. Because of its 

greater pulling power, the diesel could 

m ore easily get a train moving a n d 

move it m ore efficiently at low speed. 

In addition, a diesel locom otive could 

be coupled into multiple units operated 

from a single cab, whereas each steam 

locom otive required a separate engine

20 EMPLOYMENT AND CHANGING OCCUPATIONAL PATTERNS

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crew . As a result of these advantages, 

"pusher engines," which were used to 

assist steam locom otives in moving 

heavy trains out of term inals and up 

steep slopes, were seldom needed when 

diesel-powered locom otives were used 

on the head end of the train. Because 

diesel engines could be coupled and 

operated by a single engine crew , longer and heavier freight trains were 

more economical to run compared with 

trains powered by steam engines.

Terminals

More than half of all operating em ­

ployees in I960 were engaged in operations at term inals--"m aking-up" and 

"breaking-up" trains, transferring cars 

from one railroad to another, an d 

placing and removing cars a t industrial sidings and other tracks used for 

loading and unloading. A small proportion of these employees handled the 

movement o f passenger equipment at 

terminals. Another small group (hostlers) moved locom otives around engine 

maintenance areas and delivered lo c o ­

m otives to engine crew s in yards and at 

train departure points. Employment 

of all terminal operating employees has 

decreased, particularly during the late 

1950*s, as shown in the following tabulation:

ICC Occupation Employment Percent change

No. 1947 1955 I960 1947-60 1947-55 1955-60

T o t a l...................................... 133,981 124,089 110,206 -18 - 7 -11

105-106 Yard m asters and

assistants . . . . . . 6, 080 6,098 5, 889 - 3 (‘ )

(2)

- 3

119 Yard conductors and

forem en............................. 20, 793 20,739 18,918 - 9 - 9

120 Yard brakemen and

h e lp e r s............................. 54, 783 51, 662 45, 434 -17 - 6 -12

124 Yard engineers and

motormen . . . . . . 19,918 18, 279 15,803 -21 - 8 -1 4

128 Yard firemen and

h e lp e r s ............................. 21,374 19,213 17,969 -16 -10 - 6

107 Sw itchtenders................... 3, 177 2,839 1,976 -38 -11 -30

108-110Hostlers and helpers. . . 7,856 5, 259 4, 217 -46 -33 -20

1 A plus quantity of less than 1 percent.

2 A minus quantity of less than 1 percent.

The decline in employment among 

operating employees at terminals was 

generally much less severe than among 

those in road freight and passenger 

service, in part resulting from the 

negotiation in 1952 of a basic 40-hour 

workweek for yard o p e rating em - 

ployees. Although acceptance o f th e

agreement was optional, by I960 it 

covered most terminal operating em ­

ployees. Another factor that contributed to the le sse r employment declines

among yard operating personnel is the 

"stand-by" character of some terminal 

work. While labor requirements for 

some terminal operations, such as car 

classification, can be approximated on 

the basis of past experience, em ployment allowances must be made at terminals for the less predictable demands 

of shippers for services and for the 

early or late arrival of freight trains. 

In contrast, m ost road crews work or 

are called for work only when schedules dictate or it is known that trains 

will be ready to roll.

Declining train movement, particularly passenger, caused a reduction in 

terminal employment generally. Technological changes, too, had widespread 

effects on terminal employment, but 

some developments particularly affected certain yard occupations. 

F or example, the installation of radio 

equipment in yard offices and on lo co ­

motives affected yard operating em ­

ployment generally by permitting continuous communication between yard 

m asters and switching crew s. On the 

other hand, the use of automatic devices in freight car classification yards 

to speed operations and reduce costs 

reduced employment of yard labor in 

general, but had much greater impact 

on brakemen (switchmen) an d switchtenders.

In the m odern, huge ca r c la s s ific a ­

tion yard which handles great traffic 

volume, strings of cars are pushed to 

th e l i p of a declining slope, "cut" 

(separated) according to destination, 

and permitted to roll down to one track 

in the classification yard. In the past, 

brakemen (switchmen) rode these 

"cuts" of cars and controlled their 

speed by tightening or loosening handbrakes. Switchtenders stationed along 

the "lead" track threw switches which 

diverted cars to appropriate classification tracks. The application of contro ls--first remote, then autom atic-- 

to retard the speed of cars and to throw 

switches eliminated the need for brakemen and switchtenders for this type of 

work. Today, in a m odern car cla ssification yard, the entire operation is 

m onitored by an operator seated at a 

control panel. The operator, m erely

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In many large freight car classification yards, most hand braking of freight cars has been eliminated by automatically

and remotely controlled car retarding systems.

by pushing a button on the panel, actuates this system which automatically* 

controls the retarders and switches to 

classify all cars in an entire train. 

The development of such controls has 

been a n evolutionary p rocess--ea rly 

retarding equipment dates back to the 

m id -tw e n tie s --b u t im provem ents have 

accelerated rapidly during the postwar 

period and such control equipment has 

been widely adopted. According to one 

assessm ent of the employment effect 

of remote and automatic controls in car 

classification yards, such equipment 

"has cut operating manpower requirements from an average of 18 o r 20 

c rew s of four to eight m en, to 1 crew 

of five men or l e s s . 37

Road Freight Service

Only 3 out of ev ery 5 operating 

em ployees in road freight service in 

1947 were so employed in 1960.

3 7 Arthur B. Shenefelt, "Automation on the

Railroads," p. 7, reprinted from a series

published in the Journal of Commerce, New

York, April and May 1957.

ICC Occupation Employment Percent change

No. 1947 1955 I960 1947-60 1947-55 1955-60

T o ta l............................ 94, 256 79, 157 -39 -28 -16

113-114 Road freight

conductors . . . . 16,007 13,734 -34 -24 -14

117-118 Road freight

. . . 51, 105 39,293 33, 379 -35 -23 -15

122-123 Road freight

18,898 15, 573 -44 -32 -18

126-127 Road freight

firemen

(helpers) . . . . . . . 30,410 20,058 16,471 -46 -34 -18

Fewer freight trains were operated 

because of greatly increased train 

length and higher average tons per car 

of carload revenue freight. Total 

freight train m iles (revenue and nonrevenue), and train miles for work 

trains declined sharply. Among developments which helped to eliminate train 

delays and otherwise improve train operations were the vast postwar expansion of CTC; the introduction of radio

communication between locomotive, 

caboose, and train control personnel; 

and the increasing use of detection devices to call attention to hot bearings

and dragging e q u i p m e n t on c a r s of 

trains en route.

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Road Passenger Service

Only about half as many operating 

em ployees were engaged in passenger 

service in I960 as in 1947, prim arily 

as a result of the 50 percent decline 

in the number of passen ger-train m iles. 

The declines in employment of these 

workers are shown in the following 

tabulation:

White-Collar

Among major white-collar groups, 

only the cle rica l group had a p ro p o rtionately large reduction in em ployment. The percentage decline among 

professionals, subprofessionals, agents, 

storekeepers, and buyers fell m oderately, and there was slight o v e r a 11 

change in the employment of executives, officials, and staff assistants.

Clerical Personnel

The flow and storage of information 

on railroads present a particularly 

com plex problem because of the extensive geographical areas over which 

most carriers operate. Many different 

kinds of reports, correspondence, and 

records are prepared in connection 

with the boarding and alighting of p a ssengers, l o a d i n g and u n l o a d i n g of 

freight cars, interchange of cars 

between ca rrie rs, and arrival and departure of trains at points all over the 

country. Also, voluminous internal 

accounts and records, such as payroll, 

purchasing and inventory accounts, and 

equipment performance records must 

be kept up to date. Concentrations of 

clerica l personnel are found in the general offices of railroads, but substantial numbers work in thousands of 

freight stations and in division offices, 

passenger terminals, freight yards, and 

offices and parts storeroom s of railroad maintenance shops.

Clerical employment fell about a 

third between 1947 and I960. However, 

the drop in the number of clerks, stenographers, typists, an d other em ­

ployees engaged in routine operations

ICC

Div.

No.

Occupation Employme nt Per cent change

1947 1955 I960 1947-60 1947-55 1955-60

T o ta l....................... . . . 42,850 31, 392 22,241 -48 -27 -29

I ll Road passenger

conductor s ................... 7, 678 5, 686 4, 082 -47 -26 -28

112 Assistant passenger

conductors and

ticket collectors . . . 3,379 2, 784 2,283 -32 -18 -18

115-116 Road passenger

brakemen and

baggagemen . . . . . 9,901 6, 710 -51 -27 -32

121 Road passenger

engineers . . . . . . 9, 534 6,849 4, 841 -49 -28 -29

125 Road passenger

firemen (helpers) . . 8,663 6, 172 4. 325 -50 -29 -30

Employees

was much greater than for supervisors 

and the m ore skilled clerica l person ­

nel, as the following tabulation shows:

ICC

Div.

No.

Occupation Employment Per cent change

1947 1955 I960 1947-60 1947-55 1955-60

T o t a l........................................... 162,701 138,140 1 11,229 -32 -15 -19

4-5 Supervisory clerks, chief

clerks, and assistants . 14, 340 14,320 13,455 - 6 -(*) - 6

9 Stenographers and

secretaries (A) . . . . 3, 950 3,995 3, 767 - 5 + 1 - 6

8 Mechanical device

operators ............................. 8,451 8, 232 7, 047 -17 - 3 -1 4

7 Clerks (B and C) . . . . 114,947 94,192 73,805 -36 -18 -22

10 Stenographers and

typists (B) . . . . . . 16, 183 13,704 10, 394 -36 -15 -24

14 Switchboard operators and

office assistants . . . . 4, 830 3, 697 2, 761 -43 -23 -2 5

1 Leiss than 1 percent.

The drop in clerical employment 

w a s du e to various causes. For 

example, many passenger and freight 

stations were eliminated. Clerical 

rolls were also reduced because of the 

centralization of many equipment-maintenance facilities and reductions in the 

purchase and inventory of parts and 

supplies. Many different types of office machines were introduced to keep 

pace with the enorm ous volume of paperwork. Improved indexing and filing 

equipment and system s speeded the 

storage and retrieval of information. 

Information transmitted by teletype, 

facsim ile, and other methods was duplicated by machines at the receiving 

end, eliminating the need to copy manually.

Installation of modern d a ta -p r o - 

cessing equipment also affected clerical 

employment. In 1947, m ost railroads 

were using bookkeeping, accounting, 

and other business machines along with 

punch-card equipment to process mass 

data. The installation of electronic 

data-processing equipment on many

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m a jor railroad s since the m id- 1950's38 

perm itted the establishment of more 

centralized accounting systems. The 

immediate employment impact of the 

introduction of electronic data p rocessing was slight. Both the old and new 

methods of processing data were carried on simultaneously for extended 

periods to develop satisfactory program s and to train personnel to operate the new equipment. H ow ever, with 

com plete conversion t o the new sy stem s, labor and time savings were 

realized.

The rate at which clerical em ployees 

were displaced was programmed to occur over a number of years on some 

railroads, as a result of collective 

bargaining agreements between carriers and the union which represents 

these em ployees. One such agreement 

provided that the abolishment of p ositions owing to changes in work caused 

by conversion to electronic data p rocessing would be accomplished through 

normal attrition, not to extend beyond 

4 years fro m the effective data of each 

such ch a n g e.39

Professionals, Subprofessionals, and Agents

The role of the engineer and scientist, technician, market analyst, 

and other highly specialized railroad 

personnel was increasingly emphasized 

in the postwar period a s carriers 

sought to reduce costs and compete 

more effectively by modernizing plant, 

equipment, and operating methods. As 

a result, despite the substantial drop in 

railroad em ploym ent, the number of 

professional and subprofessional p e rsonnel (ICC Div. Nos. 3 a n d 6) fell 

moderately.

ICC Occupation Employment Percent change

No. 1947 1955 1960 1947-60 1947-55 19 55-<

T o ta l.......................................... 35, 981 35, 399 32, 348 -10 - 2 - 9

3 Professional and

subprofessional

assistants . . . . . . . 8, 169 8, 145 7, 777 - 5 - n - 5

6 Clerks and clerical

specialists (A) . . . . 11, 600 11, 505 10, 487 -10 - 1 - 9

13 Traveling auditors or

a cc ou n tan ts........................ 1,297 1, 207 1,015 -22 - 7 -16

II Storekeepers, sales agents,

2, 381 2, 275 1, 771 -26 - 4 -22

19 Traffic and other agents . 11,015 10,725 9,843 -11 - 3 - 8

20-22 Claims agents........................ 1, 519 1, 542 1,455 - 4 + 2 - 6

1 Mainly professional personnel.

2 Less than 1 percent.

Except for lawyers and legal specia lists, em ployees cla ssified as flp ro - 

fessional and subprofessional assistants" were in scientific and technical 

occupations such as engineers and 

chemists and their assistants, architects, and d ra ftsm en .4 0 The group of 

clerks and clerical specialists (a )

mainly includes professional personnel, 

such as accountants, statisticians, and 

market analysts. The relatively 

greater drop in employment of these 

em ployees com pared with scientific and 

technical personnel probably reflected 

the greater centralization of accounting 

functions that becam e possible with the 

introduction of more efficient data-processing equipment. Declining passenger traffic was an important reason for 

the reduction in employment of traveling auditors and accountants, many of 

whom audit and check passenger transportation.

Several factors contributed to the 

employment decline among storekeepers, sales agents, and buyers. 

With the adoption of the d ie se l-e le ctric 

locom otive, many maintenance facilities were eliminated. Fewer locom otives and cars in service resulted in 

reduced purchase and storage of r e ­

placements parts, petroleum products, 

and other equipment and supplies. 

Purchases of rails and ties decreased

3 8 The rapid growth in the number of such

installations in recent years is indicated by

the estimate that "there are currently some

31 railroads which have approximately 64

computers installed." R oberts. Gillett, Opportunities for Computers in hand Transportation, p. 3. Paper presented at the Railroad Computer and Automation Conference,

sponsored by the American Institute of Electrical Engineers, Land Transportation Committee, (Cleveland, Ohio), June 6, 1961.

^Agreement between the Union Pacific

Railroad Co. and the Brotherhood of Railway

and Steamship Clerks, Freight Handlers, Express and Station Employes, Sept. 26, 1958,

Sec. 6.

40Unpublished data from a Bureau of Labor

Statistics survey of scientific and technical

personnel indicate that in the railroad industry about 9 out of 10 technical professional

personnel were engineers, and 1 of every 3

technicians was a draftsman. About 1 of

every 6 scientists and engineers was engaged

in management or administrative activities.

24 EMPLOYMENT AND CHANGING OCCUPATIONAL PATTERNS

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as roadway maintenance operations 

contracted.

Executives, Officials, and Staff Assistants

Employment in this relatively small 

group increased through the m idfifties, 

reflecting the need for management 

personnel to adapt railroad operations 

to meet extensive technological change 

and growing competition from other

carriers. Since then, however, em ­

ployment in the group has dropped 

steadily. By I960, employment approxim ated the 1947 level.

ICC Occupational group Employment Percent change

1947 1955 I960 1947-60 1947-55 1955-60

T o t a l...................................... . 15,194 16,074 15,043 - 1 + 6 - 6

'Executives, general

officers, and

assistants 6, 767 7, 319 6, 760 -(*) + 8 - 8

Division officers,

assistants, and

staff assistants . . . 8,427 8, 755 8, 283 - 2 + 4 - 5

1 Less than 1 percent.

Miscellaneous Service Employees

The large group of railroad em ployees w h o perform miscellaneous services declined by about a fourth between 

1947 and 1960.

ICC Occupation Employment Percent change

No. 1947 1955 I960 1947-60 1947-55 1955-60

Total1 ................................. 22, 103 17,182 -27 - 7 -22

15 Messenger and office

2, 606 1,727 -52 -28 -34

16 Elevator operators

and attendants . . . 818 518 -50 -20 -37

17-18 Lieutenants and sergeants

of police, patrolmen,

and w atchm en................... 7,258 6,266 4, 767 -34 -14 -24

23 Miscellaneous trades

. . 882 838 370 -58 - 5 -56

24 Motor vehicle

o p e r a to rs................... . . 4,676 6, 225 5, 880 +26 +33 - 6

26 Janitors and cleaners . . 6,239 5,350 3,920 -37 -14 -27

1 Excludes small number of teamsters and stableme n (ICC Div. No. 25).

2 Includes such employees as printers, photographe:rs, bookbinders, and ships' c a r p e nters.

Factors which contributed to the 

overall drop in employment in this 

group included the e x t e n s i v e use of

radio and other intercommunication 

equipment between offices, installation 

of automatic elevators, elimination of 

many passenger and freight stations, 

and widespread consolidation of facilities for equipment maintenance, acc o u n t i n g , and car c l a s s i f i c a t i o n 

switching. Motor vehicle operator 

^rnade up the only occupational c la s s ification in which employment increased, 

reflecting a v e r y great rise in the number of highway vehicles used by Class 

I line-haul ra ilroa d s. A large p r o p o r ­

tion of these vehicles were trucks in 

nonrevenue service, many of which 

were used in place of rail hand cars 

and m otorcars to move railway maintenance crews and equipment from one 

track location to another.

RAILROAD INDUSTRY 25

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SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY

I. Government Publications

A. U.S. Department of Labor Publications

Indexes of Output P er M an-H our for Selected In d u stries, 1939 

and 1947-60, Annual Industry Series (Bureau of Labor Statistics), D ecem ber 1961, tables 6A and 6B.

"Labor Requirements for Highway Construction," Ronald E. 

Kutscher and Charles A. Waite, Monthly Labor Review, August 

1961, pp. 858-861.

"R a ilroa d O ccupations," Occupational Outlook Handbook, 1961 

edition (Bureau of Labor Statistic s), Washington 196l, pp. 704-729.

"The Railroad Commissions Recommendations,"Monthly Labor 

R e v ie w , A p ril 1962, pp. 375-389.

B. Interstate Com m erce Comm ission Publications

Intercity P assen ger-M iles, 1949-1956, Statement 580 (Bureau 

of Transport Econom ics and Statistics), January 1958.

Intercity Ton-Miles, 1939-1959, Statement 6103 (Bureau of 

Transport Econom ics and Statistics),'Washington, April 1961.

Rules Governing the C lassification of Railroad Em ployees and 

R eports of their Service and C om pensation, p re s cr ib e d by the 

Interstate C o m m e rce C om m ission , effective January 1, 1951, 

and published by the A ssociation of A m erican Railroads, 

Washington, August 1951.

7 5th Annual R eport of the Interstate C om m erce C o m m issio n , 

fiscal year ending June 30, 1961, Washington, 1961.

Tabulation of Statistics pertaining to Signals, Interlocking, 

Automatic Train Control Train Operation by Timetable and 

Train O rders and Train Communications Systems as Used on 

the Railroads of the United States, Annual (Bureau of Safety 

and Service), Washington/ I960 and 1961.

T ransport Statistics in the United States, I960, Part I, Annual 

^Bureau of Transport E conom ics and Statistics), Washington, 

table 155, p. 107.

C. U.S. Railroad Retirement Board Publications

Compensation and Service of Railroad Employees, Statistical 

Tables, 1959, C hicago, 111., 1961.

27

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I. G overnm ent P u b licatio n s--C o n .

D. The Congress of the United States

Impact of Automation on E m ploym ent, Hearings before the 

Subcommittee on Unemployment and the Impact of Automation 

of the Committee on Education and Labor (House of R ep resentatives, 87th C o n g ., 1st sess. , M arch and A pril 19 61).

National Transportation P o l ic y , R eport of the Com m ittee on 

C om m erce ( U .S .S e n a t e , 87th C o n g ., 1st sess., Pt. II, 

June 26, 1961).

P r o b le m s of the R a ilr o a d s, H earings before the Subcommittee 

on Surface Transportation of the Committee on Interstate and 

Foreign C om m erce (U.S. Senate, 85th Cong., 2d se ss., Pt. 3, 

March 1958).

The Transportation System of Our Nation, Message From The 

President of the United States Relative to the Transportation 

System of our Nation (House ofR epresentatives Document 

No. 384, 87th Cong., 2d se ss., A pril 5, 1962).

E. Other Government Publications

Report of the Presidential Railroad C om m ission, Washington, 

February 1962.

Report to the President by the E m ergency Board (Board 

No! T38)7^eptenibeFT9^L

, II. Books and R eports

Automation on the R a ilr o a d s , Arthur B. Shenefelt, reprinted 

fro m a series of a rticles published in the Journal of C o m ­

m erce, April and May 1957.

Maintenance of Way Em ploym ent on U.S. R a ilroa d s, by W illiam 

Haber and John J. C arroll, Mark L. Kahn, Merton J. Peck, 

Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Em ployes, Detroit, 

M ich., 1957.

New Concepts in R ailroading, address by Curtis Do B uford, 

Vice President, Operations and Maintenance Department, 

A ssociation of A m erican Railroads, before the Annual T ransportation and L ogistics Forum , National Defense T ran sportation Association, Denver, Colo., September 1961.

Opportunities for Computers in Land Transportation, Robert 

S. Gillett, paper presented at the Railroad Computer and 

Automation C onference Sponsored by the A m erican Institute 

of Electrical Engineers, Land Transportation Committee, 

Cleveland, Ohio, June 1961.

28 EMPLOYMENT AND CHANGING OCCUPATIONAL PATTERNS

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II. B ooks and R ep o rts--C o n .

P roceed in g s of the 59th Annual Convention, A m erica n Railway 

Engineering Association, Vol. 61, I960.

R ailroad Car F a c ts , Statistics on Car Building and C ar R e ­

pairing, 1960, American Railway Car Institute, New York, 

October 1961.

Railroad Transportation, A Statistical Record, 1921-1959, 

Issued Biennially, Association of American Railroads (Bureau 

of Railway Econom ics), Washington, December i960.

T echnological Change and The Future of the R ailw a ys, Selected 

papers presented at a 3-day conference conducted by the 

Transportation Center, at Northwestern University, Evanston, 

111., January 1961.

Term inal O perations, P roceed in g s, Fall Meeting I960, R a ilway Systems and Management Association.

The Move Toward Railroad M ergers, Railway Labor Executives* 

Association, Washington, February 1962.

Yearbook of Railroad Information, 1961 edition, Eastern R ailroad Presidents* C onference, J ersey City, N. J.

III. P eriodicals 

Railway Age

" A B igger Role for the C lerk s?" July 29, 1957, pp. 19 ff.

"Automated Equipment Cuts Rail Butt-Welding Time and Labor," 

O ctober 10, I960, pp. 40-41.

"B&O-C&O Officers Stress Deferred Maintenance Costs,"July 

17, 1961, pp. 14-18.

"Can R ailroad T rack Last 50 Y e a r s? " M arch 5, 1962, pp. 18 ff. 

"C ar Reports In a Flash," September 24, 1956, pp. 28-30. 

"Centennial Issue," September 1956.

"Central Checking Cuts Costs," November 30, 1959, pp. 28-29.

"C om m unications Guide for a M odern C lassification Y a r d ." 

May 11, 1959, pp. 14-15.

"Communications Section Hears P ros and Cons of M icrow ave," 

June 20, I960, pp. 30-31.

"C rane Lays l/4 M ile-L on g R a ils," July 17, 1961, p. 19.

RAILROAD INDUSTRY 29

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Railway A ge--C on.

’’F ir st RR ^ ra in * Begins to Hum ,” July 8, 1957, pp. 34 ff.

’’Gang Maintenance of Signals: A Money-Saver for Railroads,” 

October 19, 1959, pp. 30-31.

"How CTC Changes M /W P ictu re,” May 9, I960, p. 16.

"How GN R epairs C a rs,” N ovem ber 23, 1959, p. 18.

"H ow 1J* U ses Tw o-W ay Radio in M /W W ork,” May 29, 1961,

pp. 64-65.

"H ow M achines Team Up to Speed R estoration W o r k ,” Septem ber 14, 1959, pp. 17 ff.

"H ow New M ail S orters Help Cut RR Term inal C o sts ,” July 3, 

1961, pp. 14-16.

” How New Pushbutton CTC Helps D ispatchers,” July 13, 1959, 

pp. 32 ff.

"How SP Speeds D iesel R ep a irs,” N ovem ber 21, 1960, pp. 20-21.

"How TP Serves Shippers Better, Faster,” February 26, 1962, 

pp. 38-39.

"How Traffic Control P rovides. . . Maximum Use of Single 

T ra ct,” October 22, 1956, pp. 27-29.

"Maintenance Methods Must Im prove,” June 29, 1959, pp. 54 ff.

"M aintenance N eeds: P resen t and Future,” F ebru ary 19, 1962, 

pp. 32-33.

"M echanized Handling: Key to Big Savings,” August 12, 1957, 

pp. 12-15.

"M o r e M /W P roduction with R adio,” May 30, I960, p. 28.

” M /W : Moderate In creases,” January 16, 1961, pp. 30-32.

"R em ote Control Saves M oney,” January 12, 1959, pp. 16, 21.

"Signal Budgets Near $60 M illion,” January 1^ 1962, pp. 27, 29.

"T eletype Duplicated in 4 Seconds,” Septem ber 2, 1957, p. 40.

” 10 Y ears of R ailroad R adio,” Septem ber 2, 1957, pp. 20-24.

"T h is Automated Shop P r o c e s s e s 100 Wheel Sets in 8 H ou rs,” 

April 6, 1959, pp. 14-16.

"What M /W Employees Want,” May 4, 1959, pp. 13-15.

III. P e rio d ic a Is--C o n .

30 EMPLOYMENT AND CHANGING OCCUPATIONAL PATTERNS

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III. P e r i o d i c a l s - -C o n .

Modern Railroads

"Bridge Sprayer Cuts Cost for CNJ," April I960, pp. 69-70.

"Continuous R ail, A Challenge to the Engineer," August 1947, 

pp. 25 ff.

"IC B rings T restles Down to Earth," August I960, ppe 65 f f 0

"IC Slots Commutators Faster," September I960, pp. 153-154.

"M echanization Pays Off," D ecem ber 1948, pp. 24 ff.

"Radio Communications Rock Island Style," January 1947, 

pp. 12-14.

"Revolution on the Steel Highway," May 1959, pp. 76 ff. 

"Springfield B ecom es Shop C enter," N ovem ber 1961, ppQ 80-81. 

Railway Track and Structures

"M achines, Better Planning Spark Up BB F o r c e s ," January 

1959, p. 36.

"Make Structures Justify Their Existence," February 1959, 

p. 34.

"Signal F o r c e s Meet New C h allen ge," January 1959, p° 52.

"The Jointed Aerial Boom ," July 1959, p. 28.

The Pennsy (published by the Pennsylvania Railroad)

"'B lo o d Tests'K eep D iesels Healthy," Novem ber 1957, pp. 9-11.

"Slimming the P R R ," January-February 1958, pp. 10-12.

"Men Who Run the PR*R-Supervising Operators Are Train 

Movement Experts," Decem ber 1957, pp. 16-17.

Other Periodicals

"B rotherhood S ecures P rotection for C&O E m ployees involved 

In Consolidation of O ffic e s ," Brotherhood o f Railway and 

Steamship Clerks, Freight Handlers, Express and Station 

E m ploy es, Monthly B ulletin, D ecem ber 1957, p. 378.

"Brotherhood Signs Automation Pact Designed to Guard M em ­

bers Rights," The Railway C lerk, June 1, I960, p. 9.

"Can Railroads Meet Defense C risis?" Boilerm akers, Blacksm ith's Journal, M arch I960, p. 10.

RAILROAD INDUSTRY 31

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Other P e rio d ic a ls--C o n .

"Changing Shape of the Rail Equipment M arket," Steel, O ctober 30, 1961, pp. 38-40.

"D iesel Locom otive Rebuilding Booming at G .M .," New York 

Tim es, August 22, 1958, p. 26.

"Our B rotherhood's Position Is Presented to the Presidential 

E m erg en cy B o a r d ," The Signalman's Journal, April 1962, 

pp. 102-105.

"Pennsy^ New Coal Train Would Cut Costs, Compete with 

P rop osed blu rry* Pipe L in es," The Railway C le r k , May 1, 

1962, p. 5.

"Report on Labor Relations Problem s in Transportation Industries," Daily Labor Report, March 18, I960, No. 54: F - l .

"Revision of Op. Rules Would Hit Non-Ops, Too," The Railway C le r k , June 15, 1961, p. 11.

"SP, Rio Grande Tests New Diesel-Hydraulic German L ocom otives," Wall Street Journal, January 5, 1962, p. L

"T h e B oom in M icrow a v e," Wire and Radio C om m unications, 

September 1961, pp. 24 ff0

"The Modern Automatic Classification Y ard," Control Engineering, March 1961, pp. 138-140.

"The Railroad M erger M ov em en t," B o ile r m a k e r s 1, B lacksm ith^ Journal, May 1962, pp. 18-20.

"Unions Hit Abandonment of L -C -L Freight," The Railway 

C le r k , D ecem ber 1, 1961, p. 2.

"Rundown on Automation," Trains Magazine, March 1961, 

pp. 22-23.

ft U. S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE : 1963 O - 677315

32 EMPLOYMENT AND CHANGING OCCUPATIONAL PATTERNS

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