Pros
The pay is the best you can get without any advanced education. Initially, the learning off the job and doing it can be fun.
Cons
Expect to work on call extra boards for at least a few years. Everyone starts this way though. Expect to treated as minority who is hated by racists. I'm white by the way. I've never been treated so disrespectfully by management in my life. This is why I left after 8 years. On the bright side, the day I left felt like leaving prison and this job gave me the motivation to finish college so I would never be left without options again in life! Please have an exit plan and don't buy a new house and truck if you work here, this is virtually how everyone is trapped. If you were to lose your 100K job without a backup plan or education you will be blackballed by the other class A railroads and be worth $8/hr or whatever the going rate for a ditchdigger is. None of these skills will transfer to the real world. Shortlines will pay a quarter or a third of this rate, if you're lucky.