Rich,

Being the General Manager of a railroad that has a small workforce it is required of me to do my own light track work from time to time for such projects that do not make sense to call in a contractor for. When i say do my own light track work, that means I am the one doing it. If I myself as the General Manager have to go out and swing a spike maul I CERTAINLY am going to require an able bodied employee of mine to do the same if they want enough hours on their paycheck to pay their bills as we do not have enough hours to offer in train and engine service for a full-time employee. And just because such work is listed on the posting does not necessarily mean that somebody's unwillingness or inability to do track work would preclude them from being hired, it is just a preference.

We are a small operation and like other short line railroads across the country it is required that our employees be willing to perform many tasks and wear many different hats so to speak. This is how most short line railroads and short line employees survive is by doing whats necessary to keep the railroad running and food on the table.

Jeffrey Weeks
General Manager
Santa Cruz & Monterey Bay Railway