Occupation Profile

Rail Car Repairers

(SOC Code : 49-3043)

in California

Diagnose, adjust, repair, or overhaul railroad rolling stock, mine cars, or mass transit rail cars. Exclude "Bus and Truck Mechanics and Diesel Engine Specialists" (49-3031).

Employers usually expect an employee in this occupation to be able to do the job after Long-term on-the-job training (> 12 months) .

Occupational Wages

[Top]

Area	Year	Period	Hourly Mean	Hourly by Percentile
				25th	Median	75th
California	2012	1st Qtr	$21.80	$14.74	$21.14	$28.18

View Wages for All Areas About Wages

Occupational Projections of Employment (also called "Outlook" or "Demand")

[Top]

Area	Estimated Year-Projected Year	Employment		Employment Change		Annual Avg Openings
		Estimated	Projected	Number	Percent
California	2010 - 2020	1,700	1,900	200	11.8	60

View Projections for All Areas About Projections

Job Openings from JobCentral National Labor Exchange

[Top]

Enter a Zip Code Find a Zip code in California

Within miles of Zip Code.

Industries Employing This Occupation (click on Industry Title to View Employers List)

[Top]

Industry Title

Number of Employers in State of California

Percent of Total
Employment for Occupation in State of California

Rail Transportation

102

51.5%

About Staffing Patterns

Training Programs (click on title for more information)

[Top]

Program Title

Heavy Equipment Maintenance Technology/Technician

About Training & Apprenticeships

About This Occupation (from O*NET - The Occupation Information Network)

[Top]

Top Tasks (Specific duties and responsibilities of this job.)

Repair or replace defective or worn parts such as bearings, pistons, and gears, using hand tools, torque wrenches, power tools, and welding equipment.

Test units for operability before and after repairs.

Remove locomotives, car mechanical units, or other components, using pneumatic hoists and jacks, pinch bars, hand tools, and cutting torches.

Record conditions of cars, and repair and maintenance work performed or to be performed.

Inspect components such as bearings, seals, gaskets, wheels, and coupler assemblies to determine if repairs are needed.

Inspect the interior and exterior of rail cars coming into rail yards in order to identify defects and to determine the extent of wear and damage.

Adjust repaired or replaced units as needed to ensure proper operation.

Perform scheduled maintenance, and clean units and components.

Repair and maintain electrical and electronic controls for propulsion and braking systems.

Repair, fabricate, and install steel or wood fittings, using blueprints, shop sketches, and instruction manuals.

More Tasks for Rail Car Repairers

Top Skills used in this Job

Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the needed tools.

Troubleshooting - Determining causes of operating errors and deciding what to do about it.

Equipment Maintenance - Performing routine maintenance on equipment and determining when and what kind of maintenance is needed.

Operation and Control - Controlling operations of equipment or systems.

Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.

Operation Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.

Quality Control Analysis - Conducting tests and inspections of products, services, or processes to evaluate quality or performance.

Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.

Judgment and Decision Making - Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.

More Skills for Rail Car Repairers

Top Abilities (Attributes of the person that influence performance in this job.)

Arm-Hand Steadiness - The ability to keep your hand and arm steady while moving your arm or while holding your arm and hand in one position.

Manual Dexterity - The ability to quickly move your hand, your hand together with your arm, or your two hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble objects.

Control Precision - The ability to quickly and repeatedly adjust the controls of a machine or a vehicle to exact positions.

Multilimb Coordination - The ability to coordinate two or more limbs (for example, two arms, two legs, or one leg and one arm) while sitting, standing, or lying down. It does not involve performing the activities while the whole body is in motion.

More Abilities for Rail Car Repairers

Top Work Values (Aspects of this job that create satisfaction.)

Support - Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees.

Working Conditions - Occupations that satisfy this work value offer job security and good working conditions.

More Work Values for Rail Car Repairers

Top Interests (The types of activities someone in this job would like.)

Realistic - 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.

Investigative - Investigative occupations frequently involve working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. These occupations can involve searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally.

More Interests for Rail Car Repairers