BNSF Today

Electrician Says Military Experience Prepared Him for BNSF Career

2007-01-08

When Darrell Justice graduated from high school and joined the U.S. Army, he knew he had found the perfect match. Soon after his military career ended, he found another with BNSF.

Justice, electrician, Amarillo, Texas, was no stranger to military life. His father spent 22 years in the Army, and Justice was involved in his high school’s ROTC program.

"I was only planning on doing it for a couple of years," he says of his military service. But he spent 11 years in active duty before serving in the Reserves the past nine years. Justice was able to draw upon his experience with the Army to fulfill a role as an Army military school instructor and the past four years as an Army Reserve drill instructor.

He joined BNSF in April 1997 as a laborer. He was impressed with the BNSF’s relationship with military personnel. "When I started, about 60 percent of the people I worked with were military," he recalls. "They were either still in the Guards or former active duty. I blended right in."

Another reason the adjustment to rail life was easy was due to BNSF’s emphasis on safety. In the Army, working with a variety of weapons requires diligently following safety procedures. Whether dealing with military weapons or a locomotive, procedures at both jobs drive home the safety message.

"The message doesn’t just end when we get off work," he says. "We’re around it all the time whether we’re drilling or working on a locomotive. It’s a great way to stay safe no matter where you’re at."

Justice says his experience with BNSF has been great. He talks regularly to BNSF employees who also are part of his Reserve unit. He said each talks highly of their treatment while finding balance between the military and railroad careers.

"BNSF supports everything we do," he says. "It’s great to know they will do everything they can to work with our military schedule. They have no idea how much that means to us."

Learn more at www.bnsf.com/careers/military.

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