KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Transportation jobs are set to boom due to the signing of the stimulus package Tuesday. Many road and rail projects will now get money to fund hiring and start or finish projects.
The Missouri Department of Transportation has many "shovel ready" projects that will now be funded, requiring the need for more workers. A check of the
MoDOT jobs site shows dozens of state-wide jobs, many here in the
Kansas City region.
A Commercial Driving License (CDL) is required for many transportation jobs. MoDOT is offering free workshops on how to obtain a CDL.
Click here for dates, times and locations.
The Kansas Department of Transportation is only hiring essential workers and is under a hiring freeze.
The railroad industry is poised to benefit from the stimulus after failing to aggressively recruit new workers during the late '90's.
Now there is a need for conductors, locomotive engineers and freight carmen.
"We will need 60,000 employees in the next five years", says Andy Burton, National Association of Railroad Sciences. "The railroad industry needs 15,000 conductors now."
The National Association of Railroad Sciences (NARS) offers training programs to anyone interested. "The minimum age is 18, but recently we graduated a 63 year old who now has a job working on the railroad," replied Burton.
Burton tells NBC Action News a conductor can expect to make $63,000 in their first year of employment. Top pay for a locomotive engineer is up to $125,000 per year.
NARS training is funded by railroad companies. Four, six and eight week training courses are available at the Overland Park campus.
Click here for more info.
Kansas City is home to six rail companies: Burlington Northern-Santa Fe, Union Pacific, Kansas City Southern, Norfolk Southern, Gateway Western and I&M Railroad.
