How to hire rail car repairers

Job description template

Copy it, fill in the brackets, and remove anything that does not fit your job. Keep only must-haves you would really turn someone away for.

[Job title] at [Company name]
[City, State] · [Full-time / Part-time] · [Pay range]

About the role
[Two or three sentences about your team, the work and why it matters.]

What you will do
• Adjust repaired or replaced units as needed to ensure proper operation.
• Inspect components such as bearings, seals, gaskets, wheels, and coupler assemblies to determine if repairs are needed.
• Inspect the interior and exterior of rail cars coming into rail yards to identify defects and to determine the extent of wear and damage.
• Record conditions of cars, and repair and maintenance work performed or to be performed.
• Remove locomotives, car mechanical units, or other components, using pneumatic hoists and jacks, pinch bars, hand tools, and cutting torches.
• Repair or replace defective or worn parts such as bearings, pistons, and gears, using hand tools, torque wrenches, power tools, and welding equipment.
• Repair, fabricate, and install steel or wood fittings, using blueprints, shop sketches, and instruction manuals.
• Test units for operability before and after repairs.

What you bring
• [Required license, certification or years of experience, if any]
• [Education, only if you truly need it. Typical to start in this job: High school diploma or equivalent]
• Strong critical thinking, active listening and speaking skills
• Working knowledge of mechanical
• [Anything else you would really turn someone away for]

Pay and benefits
[Pay range]. For reference, the U.S. median for this job is $32.46 an hour ($67,530 a year).
[Benefits, schedule and anything else candidates should know.]

How to apply
[Apply on JAI Bot. Every applicant hears back.]

Copy the template Check your finished job post

Interview questions for rail car repairers

Ask every candidate the same questions, in the same order, and write down what they say. Questions about past work show what someone has actually done.

1. Tell me about a time you had to adjust repaired or replaced units as needed to ensure proper operation. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
2. Tell me about a time you had to inspect components such as bearings, seals, gaskets, wheels, and coupler assemblies to determine if repairs are needed. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
3. Tell me about a time you had to inspect the interior and exterior of rail cars coming into rail yards to identify defects and to determine the extent of wear and damage. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
4. Tell me about a time you had to record conditions of cars, and repair and maintenance work performed or to be performed. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
5. Describe a decision at work where the obvious answer was wrong. How did you work out the better choice?
6. Tell me about a time you had to understand a request or problem that was explained poorly. How did you make sure you got it right?
7. Explain something technical from your last job as you would to a new coworker.
8. Why this job, and why now? What would make you stay here for the long term?

Good answers name a real situation, what the person did themselves and what happened. Avoid questions about age, family plans, religion, health, national origin or anything else unrelated to the job.

What rail car repairers do

• Adjust repaired or replaced units as needed to ensure proper operation.
• Inspect components such as bearings, seals, gaskets, wheels, and coupler assemblies to determine if repairs are needed.
• Inspect the interior and exterior of rail cars coming into rail yards to identify defects and to determine the extent of wear and damage.
• Record conditions of cars, and repair and maintenance work performed or to be performed.
• Remove locomotives, car mechanical units, or other components, using pneumatic hoists and jacks, pinch bars, hand tools, and cutting torches.
• Repair or replace defective or worn parts such as bearings, pistons, and gears, using hand tools, torque wrenches, power tools, and welding equipment.
• Repair, fabricate, and install steel or wood fittings, using blueprints, shop sketches, and instruction manuals.
• Test units for operability before and after repairs.

Skills that matter most

Critical ThinkingActive ListeningSpeakingMechanical

Education, experience and outlook for rail car repairers

• Typical education to start: High school diploma or equivalent (BLS)
• Related work experience most have: 3 to 6 months (O*NET)
• Training on the job: Long-term on-the-job training (BLS)
• Job outlook: +2.6% over ten years, about as fast as average · about 1,600 openings a year (BLS)

What to pay rail car repairers

Pay depends a lot on where the job is. Highest and lowest median yearly pay by state:

See rail car repairers pay in every state

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Job duties and skills: O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license; O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. JAI Bot has modified this information; USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. Pay: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS, May 2025. Interview questions and the job description template: JAI Bot, based on the duties and skills above.