Job prospects are looking good for this year's railway conductor class at the SAIT Mayland Heights campus. CPR announced it will be opening 150 jobs in Alberta as a result of recent economic recovery. Matt Janz photo

The timing couldn’t be any better for SAIT’s railway conductor students.
Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) will be creating approximately 150 jobs in Alberta as a result of economic recovery. This is great news for conductor students who’ve been concerned about their employability in the past.
“We are pretty honest with students,” said project co-ordinator and railway instructor Gerry Bowland.
He says instructors generally let students know when there isn’t necessarily a job for them immediately after their term.
Students like Adam Krasey can attest to this transparency. “It was heavily emphasized that there wasn’t a guarantee for a job when going into this,” said Krasey.
However, recent conditions have given the five students in the winter conductor class new attitude of optimism.
“The industry is in for a massive swing simply because it is old,” said instructor Jeff Taylor.  A large number of pending retirements adds to the possibility for job prospects.
Mike LoVecchio, media relations and  senior manager for CPR, said 85 people within SAIT are currently lined up for a position with CPR, and that the polytechnic is a favoured partner in the industry.
“Graduates are well prepared to begin working at CP, thus reducing our training time,” said LoVecchio.  “Program graduates tend to be more motivated and better employees.”
Adam Krasey now looks forward to the rest of his training, and says going to SAIT was a move to get a better career that included his passion.
The added recruitment at the end of his term is icing on the cake.  “Everything seems to be falling in place,” he said.
The economic downturn began to take its toll on CPR during the second quarter of 2008, as volumes of forest and automotive products decreased as a reflection of the respective markets.
“At the onset of the 2008 recession, demand for lumber fell significantly, reflecting the collapse of new home construction in the United States, and to a lesser degree in Canada,” said LoVecchio.  “Intermodal and automotive volumes tend to mirror consumer demand, and both were off significantly during the recession.”
However, due to volume recovery within the first three quarters of 2010, CPR has announced they will be investing anywhere between $950 million and $1.05 billion for capital projects in 2011.  Infrastructure renewal, volume growth, productivity initiatives and network enhancements will all be included in CPR’s investments.
Employees will also feel the warmth of the recovery as jobs will be reposted, including current SAIT conductor students who will be interviewed sometime during this semester.

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