Seniority is what it is--I think that any other form of pecking order is open to capriciousness or favoritism (the definition of "merit" is probably open to all sorts of manipulation). Of course, an ironclad seniority date can trump a variety of ills and shortcomings: human nature, I'm afraid. I admit it's easy for me to say now, thirty-two years down the road, but I put in my share of nights, weekends, and lousy assignments. I've seen firemen go, cabooses go, branchlines go, yard jobs go, telegraphers and yard clerks go, ad infinitum. We can complain and blame all we want, but I don't think it's going to do any good. Oddly enough, the seniority system is one of the few "traditional" railroad practices left, for better or worse.
By the way, I don't know just what the SFBR is doing in Richmond, but I can confirm the sign on the fence on South Harbour Way.