What the work involves, what it pays, and real lines you can start from. Answer a few small questions and leave with a resume.
Also called yardmaster, car chaser, car dispatcher and car distributor.
$78,000
Median pay a year
46,440
People do this work
6
Resume lines ready for you
Pay and headcount are from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The lines are written from what the US Department of Labor records about this work.
An example
A Railroad Conductor and Yardmaster resume, filled in
Every line below comes from the same public record as the rest of this page. The greyed parts are the ones only you can answer.
Railroad Conductor and Yardmaster
Summary
Railroad conductor coordinating train crew activities, signaling engineers, discussing routes, and directing yard operations. Yardmaster managing train schedules, switching orders, and ensuring safe and efficient railroad traffic
Experience
Railroad Conductor and Yardmaster
Where you worked
Month Year to Month Year
Signaled engineers to start or stop trains using telecommunications equipment or hand signals
Conferred with engineers about train routes, schedules, and cargoes, and discussed alternative routes for rail issues
Received information about train or rail problems from dispatchers or electronic monitoring devices
Directed and instructed workers in yard activities like switching tracks and routing traffic
Operated controls to activate track switches and traffic signals
Kept records of train car contents and destinations, ensuring proper car placement on routes
Inspected each car periodically during runs to ensure safety and compliance
Skills
Core Skills
Directing transport activities, Reviewing work orders, Inspecting locomotives, Recording travel details, Receiving performance instructions, Monitoring vehicle movement, Arranging maintenance activities, Controlling traffic equipment, Recording production data
Checking & Planning
Verifying information or specifications
Education
High School Diploma Your school, Year
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What to put on a Railroad Conductor and Yardmaster resume
Real duties for this job, already written the way a resume reads. Inside Rung you choose the ones that were yours.
What did you do each day?
Choose what fits, or say your own.
Signaled engineers to start trainsTalked with engineers about routesReceived info on train problemsGot instructions from dispatchersDirected workers in yard activitiesOperated controls for track switches
becomes
On your resume
Signaled engineers to initiate train runs, ensuring timely departures and adherence to schedules.
Received and relayed information on train problems to ensure timely responses and solutions
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Then it asks for one more thing
The line that could show more, and the fact that lands it.
Make it stronger
A few lines could show more. Each one is asked, and answered by choosing.
Add how often you signaled engineers for train runs.
The line
Signaled engineers several times each shift to initiate train runs, ensuring timely departures and adherence to schedules
Add how often you signaled engineers for train runs.
Pick one that fits
Several times each shiftMultiple times dailyOften during peak hours
Or add your own.
In your wordsAdd it
Adding it to the line…
Added to your resume
Show what improved once you relayed information on train problems.
The line
Received and relayed information on train problems to ensure timely responses and solutions
Show what improved once you relayed information on train problems.
Pick one that fits
Reduced delays for trainsImproved safety for passengersEnhanced communication with the team
Or add your own.
In your wordsAdd it
Adding it to the line…
Added to your resume
Every ready answer is in plain words, never a figure. Nothing is invented to fill a gap.
What it is made of
Skills for a Railroad Conductor and Yardmaster resume
What this work is made of. Rung offers these and keeps the ones you claim.
What are you good at?
Directing transport activities
Reviewing work orders
Inspecting locomotives
Recording travel details
Receiving performance instructions
Monitoring vehicle movement
Verifying information or specifications
Arranging maintenance activities
Controlling traffic equipment
Recording production data
Preparing accident reports
Signaling others
The work itself
What a Railroad Conductor and Yardmaster does
The public record of what this job is, in one paragraph.
Coordinate activities of switch-engine crew within railroad yard, industrial plant, or similar location. Conductors coordinate activities of train crew on passenger or freight trains. Yardmasters review train schedules and switching orders and coordinate activities of workers engaged in railroad traffic operations, such as the makeup or breakup of trains and yard switching.
What it pays
How much does a Railroad Conductor and Yardmaster make?
Annual pay across the United States. The middle figure is the median: half earn less than that, and half earn more.
25th percentile
$65,610
Median
$78,000
75th percentile
$83,820
About 46,440 people do this work in the United States.
What it pays in each state
State
25th percentile
Median
75th percentile
AR
$67,710
$67,710
$67,710
AZ
$76,130
$78,080
$78,080
CA
$69,230
$69,950
$77,630
CO
$77,020
$77,550
$83,240
DE
$80,410
$80,410
$82,330
FL
$78,560
$79,600
$97,410
GA
$63,230
$75,810
$92,610
IL
$76,980
$79,820
$96,120
IN
$79,220
$81,260
$83,280
KS
$49,190
$68,730
$71,400
KY
$34,440
$52,380
$52,430
LA
$46,350
$62,170
$65,170
MD
$82,060
$83,390
$95,640
MI
$65,610
$78,960
$79,890
MN
$78,830
$78,930
$90,560
MO
$68,030
$68,030
$68,240
MS
$59,930
$78,010
$78,040
NC
$52,050
$58,930
$80,570
NM
$76,370
$77,890
$77,890
NY
$78,970
$80,000
$105,210
OH
$61,340
$61,390
$61,390
OK
$78,140
$102,260
$128,140
OR
$68,580
$68,580
$68,580
PA
$63,970
$83,610
$83,820
SC
$73,660
$73,660
$73,660
SD
$62,730
$62,730
$62,980
TN
$62,190
$71,740
$73,100
TX
$59,310
$68,980
$71,070
VA
$79,750
$79,900
$79,900
WA
$63,880
$79,040
$92,400
WI
$59,650
$59,690
$73,030
WV
$55,160
$55,180
$76,820
WY
$68,430
$68,430
$107,560
Other names
Other names for this job
yardmaster, car chaser, car dispatcher, car distributor, car spotter, centralized traffic control operator, conductor, ctc operator, dispatch manager, engine supervisor, freight conductor, freight trainperson.
This page is about the occupation Railroad Conductors and Yardmasters. What this job involves and what it is made of come from O*NET 30.3, the US Department of Labor's occupation database, refreshed July 2026; Rung writes those records into the plain sentences you see. Pay comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS release for 2025. Rung is an independent service and is not affiliated with or endorsed by either agency. How Rung handles accuracy is on the accuracy page, and the full data credits are on the credits page.