Key Attributes Rail-track Laying And Maintenance Equipment Operators Need To Succeed In Their Career

by Noah Smith

Friday, August 7, 2015

Rail-track laying and maintenance equipment operators lay, repair, and maintain track for standard or narrow-gauge railroad equipment used in regular railroad service or in plant yards, quarries, sand and gravel pits, and mines. Includes ballast cleaning machine operators and railroad bed tamping machine operators.

The core tasks that rail-track laying and maintenance equipment operators are likely to carry out include:

Patrol assigned track sections so that damaged or broken track can be located and reported.
Repair or adjust track switches, using wrenches and replacement parts.
Clean tracks or clear ice or snow from tracks or switch boxes.
Lubricate machines, change oil, or fill hydraulic reservoirs to specified levels.
Cut rails to specified lengths, using rail saws.
Dress and reshape worn or damaged railroad switch points or frogs, using portable power grinders.

In order to successfully forge ahead with their careers, analysts in a survey carried out by U.S. Department of Labor (via O*NET) have marked out the following as important attributes that rail-track laying and maintenance equipment operators would need. These attributes have been selected from characteristics and requirements strongly associated with the occupation. They are

Abilities: Enduring attributes of the individual that influence performance
Interests: Preferences for work environments. Occupational Interest Profiles (OIPs) are compatible with Holland's (1985, 1997) model of personality types and work environments. Six interest categories are used to describe the work environment of occupations: Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, Social, Enterprising, and Conventional. An OIP consists of six numerical scores indicating how descriptive and characteristic each work environment (or interest area) is for an occupation
Knowledge: Organized sets of principles and facts applying in general domains
Skills: These include basic skills, which are developed capacities that facilitate learning or the more rapid acquisition of knowledge. Plus cross-functional skills, which are developed capacities that facilitate performance of activities that occur across jobs
Style: Personal characteristics that can affect how well someone performs a job

We have listed out attributes which were scored 80% or more in terms of importance by the analysts.

Having a strong preference for realistic work environments. Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.
Attribute Type: Interests Score: 100%

Being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
Attribute Type: Style Score: 86.4%

Being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
Attribute Type: Style Score: 85.6%