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Working on the railroad

April 25, 2013

All the new rail Metro is laying means more job opportunities in maintenance and operations. Photo courtesy Metro

With soaring tuition costs and an economy recovering at a glacial pace, it’s a tough time to pursue a career. But Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority is in the midst of a vast expansion of its rail network and will need skilled hands to take care of such work as maintenance, inspection and communications.

With that approaching reality in mind, Metro’s Board of Directors on Thursday approved the Rail Technical Training Program, a new collaboration between the transportation agency and Los Angeles Trade Technical College.

“For young people who aren’t interested in a four-year school, this could be an opportunity to get hands-on training and learn something specific to the transportation industry,” said Marion Jane Colston, director of strategic and organizational planning for the agency.

Metro will provide technology and on-the-job expertise while the college adds the academic piece. Together, they hope to create a cutting-edge program to train existing employees and give a new generation of workers the skills they’ll need to land jobs at Metro or other rail operators.

After the program is approved, staff from both sides will develop a standardized curriculum, which will be presented to the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office for review. If approved, the college will then be able to offer a new trade certificate and students can apply for financial aid to take the classes.

Leticia Barajas, the trade school’s vice president of instruction, sees great potential in the program.

“Our goal is to become the premier training institution for Metro,” Barajas said. “Students seeking this certification could also get their associates degree and move on further.”

In the future, she added, the school hopes to train students for management positions to give them another path to career advancement.

For Metro, the program is a way to make sure its staff has the best training possible to keep trains moving swiftly and safely, while preparing to meet a looming need for additional skilled workers.

“For every mile we add, we’ll need to increase the staff by a similar proportion,” said Bruce Shelburne, Metro’s executive director for rail operations.

When the projects from the Measure R sales tax are built, the amount of rail will have roughly doubled, so the number of workers will need to double, too.

For Barajas, that sounds like a bright future for her students. “It’s an amazing opportunity to get into high paying jobs with real opportunity for career advancement in the L.A. region.”