Delivering Benefits to All Stakeholders
For Our Workforce
Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern Envision Every Union Employee Who Wants a Job in the Combined Company Will Have One
Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern union employees — including train crew, mechanical and engineering — will have job opportunities with the combined company. Non-union workers will have opportunities to grow as part of a larger, combined enterprise.
Protecting and Expanding Opportunities for Employees and Local Economies
Beyond job security, expected growth in rail volumes will drive additional employment opportunities in communities across the combined rail network. Every rail transportation job supports 3.9 additional jobs across the U.S. economy.¹
Preserving the Best-Paid Industrial Careers in America
Railroad employees are among the most highly compensated workers across U.S. industries. They also receive a generous retirement that exceeds other workers in the private sector, as well as top tier health care benefits.
As of 2024, the total average value of Class 1 railroad craft employee annual pay and benefit package (including healthcare, paid time off and retirement programs) now ranges from about $135,000 to almost $190,000, with an average of $160,000.2
Total compensation, including sick leave benefits, best-in-class healthcare and competitive wages, negotiated over decades of collective bargaining, position rail workers in the top 10% of all U.S. industries.3 Career railroaders – those 60+ with 30+ years of service – receive over twice the average Social Security benefit in retirement.4
Union Pacific Invests in Its People
Union Pacific University offers employees free tuition at a nationally ranked university – more than 1,000 employees have enrolled and nearly 170 obtained a free degree, including 25 who graduated this spring.
Union Pacific’s StockUP program offers all employees the ability to buy company shares through payroll deductions. Participants receive a 20% company match of up to 5% of their base compensation per pay period.
1 Source: Association of American Railroads — Policy & Economics Report, “Rail Transportation and the U.S. Economy: Fueling Growth, Trade and Opportunity.” February 28, 2025. Page 13.
2 Freight Rail & Time Off Policies | AAR
3 Discover Benefits and Perks at Union Pacific.