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A-1 A P P E N D I X A Recruitment Our first topic is going to be about how you came to work in the railroad industry. ⢠First, I would like to know if any of you worked elsewhere before taking a job in the railroad industry. (If any response, ask where they worked.) ⢠At what point in your career did you think about working for a railroad? Probe: Consider it in high school? College? ⢠How did you initially learn about job opportunities in the railroad industry? ⢠What attracted you to work in the railroad industry? What was your perception of the industry at that time? ⢠How did you find out about your first job in the industry? Probe: Was it through a friend, family member, advertisement? Social media? ⢠What additional ways could the railroads use to publicize railroad jobs? ⢠After submitting your application, what was the hiring process like for you? Probe: Was there a job preview? How was the position explained to you? ⢠Once on the job, to what extent did the job prove to be as explained to you during the hiring process? What was different? Initial/Refresher Training Now Iâd like to move on to training. ⢠How did you obtain the skills for your present job? (Have everyone respond. Order by craft.) Probe: community college training, OJT, employer training program, mentoring, other. For mentoring, probe on willingness to share info. ⢠To what extent did this training prepare you for your job? [Maybe ask this together with first question as we go around.] ⢠What could be done to improve the training process? ⢠Beyond your initial training with the railroad, what training has your railroad offered you? Are there areas where you think training would help you do your job more effectively but your railroad has not offered training? ⢠How do you learn to use new equipment that the railroad purchases? ⢠Have you ever mentored another employee? What was that like? ⢠What would motivate you to apply for your supervisorâs job? Focus Group Questions
A-2 A Guide to Building and Retaining Workforce Capacity for the Railroad Industry Retention Iâd like to spend some time talking about what has kept you in your job with the railroad. ⢠To what extent has your job met your expectations? Probe: likes, dislikes. Try to get at internal vs. external factors. ⢠What could your employer do to increase your job satisfaction? ⢠Why do you stay on the job? ⢠Would you recommend the railroad industry to a friend or family member? Why? Why not? ⢠If you wanted to make sure that you and others like you stay with the railroad for a long time, what recommendations would you make to the railroad? Wrap-up ⢠What other suggestions do you have regarding recruitment and retention?
