The Union Pacific Railroad says it’ll hire several thousand people this year. Spokesman Jack Koraleski says they need more people in part to help handle an influx of holiday merchandise shipped this month from China, Japan, Asia and other countries into U.S. ports.
He says those containers full of toys, gift wrapping, electronics, bikes, sporting goods, and more start coming into the country now. “We give Santa a leg up on the Christmas season by getting them moved into distribution centers across the United States,” Koraleski says. While the goods may arrive at the shopping mall on department-store trucks, Koraleski says trains are likely to be an important part of their journey.
He says railroads do a lot for the economy and the country, explaining an “inter-modal” train carries 200 or more large metal containers lifted from a ship that will later be latched onto the back of a semi, taking congestion off the highways for a long part of their trip and moving freight with fuel efficiency and the least amount of pollution.
All the shipping activity may suggest an idea: Koraleski says it’s a good bet this is the time to apply for a job with the railroad. “This would be a great time,” he exclaims. Koraleski says the U-P plans to hire five to six-thousand people this year, and will again next year.
The railroad’s headquarters are in Omaha, and three years ago the Union Pacific Railroad Museum moved to Council Bluffs. Surf to the Union Pacific railroad’s website www.up.com