Great place if you want any easy paycheck without having to work - Software Developer BNSF Railway Employee Review

2.0
Jan 3, 2018
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

This place has really good retirement benefits and you can work there for years, getting a full paycheck, without having to work.

Cons

To start, I was on the corporate side, and not the field side. If you are considering a field position, I would personally advise against it. The railroad by nature is very volatile. Even if you do everything safely, there are too many unknowns to stay alive consistently. We got emails all the time like "Welp, the wind shifted, so this guy was cut in half and no longer has legs." or "The load on the train shifted and this woman was turned into a fine mist." and she was a single mother of 2. On the corporate side, it was very mind numbing with a ton of bureaucracy. I got told several times there that directors didn't want me to start projects. It was a very good place for collecting an easy paycheck if that is something you're interested in, but it got very depressing feeling like I was not accomplishing anything. This was not just a complaint of me - with the Management Trainee positions, several other young people entered the company at the same time. Roughly 40% were okay with just collecting the easy paycheck, but the other 60% have left the company for similar reasons. The culture was also really depressing - most of the employees were in their 50's-60's and it felt like they were just waiting to die/retire. The reason why I still gave this a star is that it is a good location for two types of people - people on the verge of retiring or people who want to get paid a lot of money without ever having to work. The retirement benefits are very good, with RRT, pension, and 401k. I knew several people who would work only 4-5 hours a week and still get paid their full salary, and I eventually transitioned into this to deal with the depression. I would get to read several ebooks at my desk, and it was not uncommon to see people netflix at their desk.

Explore other reviews about BNSF Railway

5.0
Jul 8, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

-Great Benefits -People Forward culture -Railroad Retirement

Cons

-Some working policies are as forward as they can be for a railroad but are not as flexible compared to other industries

5.0
Jul 3, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Great people and strong coworkers across the organization. The company offers competitive pay, strong benefits, and good overall stability. There are many experienced employees who care about the work and are willing to help others succeed.

Cons

The organization can be very hierarchical, which sometimes makes it difficult to drive change or move quickly. Decisions often require multiple layers of approval, so it can take longer than expected to finalize direction or make progress. There is also limited flexibility compared to what many other companies offer, especially when it comes to working arrangements.

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