Part A FRA WFD Surveyv2

SUPPORTING JUSTIFICATION – Part A
Workforce Development (WFD) Survey
OMB No. 2130-0621
Summary of Submission

1.

•

This information collection request is an update to the previously approved survey
conducted in 2018. The proposed qualitative study is intended to survey a select
group of railroad industry personnel to gain insight into the current workforce
development practices and challenges.

•

The total number of burden hours requested for this submission is 88.75 hours.

•

The total number of responses requested for this submission is 213.

Circumstances that make collection of the information necessary.
The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) has statutory responsibility to ensure the
safety of railroad operations as prescribed in the Federal Railroad Safety Act of 1970 (49
U.S.C. § 20103). In order to conduct safe railroad operations, the workforce must have
the requisite skills to operate equipment and technologies. To that end, one of FRA’s
strategic initiatives is to explore and share workforce development best practices that
support the railroad industry in building and maintaining a workforce with the necessary
skills and talent to conduct safe railroad operations.
Due to an increasingly dynamic and maturing workforce combined with changing skills
requirements imposed by newly introduced technologies, there is an increasing risk in not
having the necessary talent pools to fill critical railroad operational positions.
Since 2011, the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Federal Railroad Administration
(FRA) has routinely performed a comprehensive overview of the railroad industry
workforce. The Railroad Industry Modal Profile was a response to the DOT National
Transportation Workforce Development Initiative that required each DOT Operating
Administration (OA), also referred to as modes, to produce an analysis of its industry
workforce.
The most recent published update in April 2016, Railroad Industry Modal Profile: An
Outline of the Railroad Industry Workforce Trends, Challenges, and Opportunities,
highlighted numerous workforce challenges including aging workforce, diversity,
knowledge management and succession planning, work-life balance, recruitment, and the
impact of evolving technology.
The prevailing workforce concerns during the early stages of the DOT National
Transportation Workforce Development Initiative were the large number of retirementeligible employees in transportation related fields and the national shortage of science,
technology, engineering, and math (STEM) graduates. Since the railroad industry had
done very little hiring in the late 1980s and throughout most of the 1990s, the retirement1

eligible population became quite large, even beyond that of most other industries and
transportation modes (each of which were also grappling with similar retirement
population concerns).
These workforce challenges persist and although industry has recognized the need to
focus on recruitment and retention strategies, it continues to face risks in maintaining a
viable workforce and building a pipeline of diverse talent. In order to take effective and
efficient action to minimize these risks, FRA requires trustworthy information on current
workforce development challenges, strategies, and outcomes. Initial data collected for
the modal profile established a baseline understanding of the risks and status. However,
in an effort to confirm and further develop the understanding of the risks, potential
solutions, and best practices that have been implemented by railroad stakeholders, this
survey is proposed. With this submission, FRA is requesting permission to gather the
needed knowledge about the railroad industry workforce.
2.

How, by whom, and for what purpose the information is to be used.
The Department of Transportation (DOT) Research and Innovative Technology
Administration (RITA) launched the National Transportation Workforce Development
Strategy Initiative in 2009 in partnership with representatives from each DOT OA. The
intent of the partnership was to establish an analytical foundation outlining a
collaborative cross-modal approach for identifying and addressing transportation
workforce challenges on a national platform. The FRA identified a team to support the
DOT initiative and develop a Railroad Industry Modal Profile.
From 2010 to 2011, the Federal Railroad Administration Workforce Development Team
(FRA-WDT) conducted extensive research and dialogues with railroad industry
stakeholders (e.g. Class I freight and passenger railroads, short line and regional
railroads, labor unions, major associations, academia and other railroad experts) in order
to develop the Railroad Industry Modal Profile, which was initially published in October
2011. The purpose of the first publication was to identify workforce issues facing the
railroad industry at that time in addition to outlining viable solutions to address the
issues.
The proposed survey is an effort to update the modal profile and establish a methodology
for systematically collecting the data every two years. Primary users of the information
will be personnel within FRA whose charge it is to identify and share workforce
development practices to address the railroad industry’s workforce talent needs and
ensure safe operations. A second set of users will be the railroad industry in general.
Both management and labor in the various industry sectors face similar challenges in
finding and developing diverse talent pools, succession planning and knowledge
management. The summarized data can assist industry stakeholders in identifying and
potentially mitigating those challenges. Finally, the public, including academia and
railroad associations, have an interest in understanding and analyzing the collective status
of workforce development across the industry. As new technologies are introduced,
public concerns about safety arise. This summary information can provide insights as to
how the railroad industry is developing the necessary skills in their workforce and
keeping pace with change.
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The purpose of this data collection effort is to learn about workforce development
practices and activities, attitudes about these activities, and concerns and
recommendations to address workforce development challenges. FRA is conducting this
survey as a qualitative rather than quantitative data collection effort. To that end, the
qualitative data will be used to gain specific information regarding the status of
workforce development programs and activities. FRA intends to collect this data every
two years so the data points will reflect the current state of workforce development in the
rail industry and help to identify trends.
The FRA desires to incrementally standardize and improve the data collection effort to
provide more consistency and value to the modal profile. A survey instrument will allow
for consistent and efficient data collection across years. Following the same methodology
as previously used in the 2018 study, the FRA Office of Research, Development &
Technology plans to issue the survey to industry stakeholders in the following segments.
Mode/Group
Passenger Railroads
Class 1 Freight Railroads
Labor Unions
Short Line and Regional Railroads
Academia
Railroad Industry Associations
3.

Extent of automated information collection.
All data collected will be via a web-based survey. This method of administration is
possible as most questions in the survey will be fixed choices with an option for
additional written response.
Human resource and workforce development personnel within organizations from across
the railroad industry and associated organizations comprise the sample population for this
data collection effort. Contact information for this subset has been identified for each of
the individuals within the survey population of interest. E-mail addresses (and
introductions) will invite respondents to reply to the web-based survey form.
FRA intends to collect 100% of the survey data electronically. Understanding that some
individuals may be more comfortable completing a paper version of the survey, the email
invitation to participate will also include information regarding how to request and
complete a paper survey.
Considering the limited survey population and their respective positions related to
support of workforce related policies and issues, it is expected that all participants will be
familiar with technology to facilitate the ease of survey data collection.
Historically, web-based surveys have a higher item non-response rate. To mitigate this
risk, FRA has designed the web survey to require answers to all questions before moving
to the next section of the survey. This will reduce non-responses due to carelessness or
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unintentional error. Each survey question will have a “prefer not to answer” option for
those questions in which the respondent chooses not to respond.
4.

Efforts to identify duplication.
The survey team has been in communication with the leadership of FRA and knows for
certain that there are no similar efforts undertaken within the Administration and the need
to update the data is highly desired.
Additionally, relevant groups in academia and in transportation policy have shown
interest in the existing Modal Profile data.

5.

Efforts to minimize the burden on small businesses.
Respondents will be individuals in railroad industry organizations (e.g. labor unions,
academia, railroad associations, and railroad workers). Individuals invited to respond to
the survey will be identified through the industry research and the organizations’
management referrals to pinpoint the appropriate expertise. The 30-question survey can
be completed in approximately 25 minutes so the burden to businesses should be
negligible.

6.

Impact of less frequent collection of information.
FRA has considered a less frequent data collection period from the proposed two-year
survey cycle. Two years is considered optimal based on the rapid pace of change in the
railroad industry and the importance of the data in providing research and information
that can assist in shaping policy and priorities for the workforce development community
in rail. Taking into account the time needed to develop and implement workforce
strategies, updating the profile data every other year will provide the inputs necessary to
identify areas for improvement while simultaneously providing the time necessary to
measure effectiveness of ongoing strategies in meeting industry challenges. Should the
surveys be conducted less frequently, shifting trends and new challenges to workforce
development would not be identified as quickly, potentially compounding corrective
actions to meet these challenges. Additionally, data reflecting progress with
implemented programs will be outdated and limit the ability to assess data in context of
when it was originally captured.
Taking appropriate and effective action to address workforce issues requires that timely
data is captured in the survey. The data collection cycle proposed can potentially reveal
safety-related indicators and trends that require action by railroad stakeholders. This data
will assist the FRA and key stakeholders across the railroad industry to develop and adapt
strategies in a timely manner to address workforce challenges and improve collaboration
of best practices.
Currently the Modal Profile is the only known resource for the aggregated qualitative and
quantitative data to provide the railroad industry information to respond to workforce
development challenges. Trustworthy qualitative data collected over a period of years are
needed to ascertain the status of the workforce and identify strategies to address problems
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and to design effective solutions, as needed. Further, considering the time needed to
design and implement programs, and budgeting and planning cycles, data collection
every two years is appropriate.
7.

Special circumstances.
The survey contains no special circumstances. Survey participation is entirely voluntary.
Respondents will not be required to participate; if they do choose to engage in the survey
effort, they will not be required to respond more than every two years. Further,
participants will be given up to 60 days to complete the survey. In accordance with their
participation, no confidential/proprietary information, outside documentation or records,
or pledge of confidentiality will be requested in association with the survey.
Respondents will be invited to respond via an e-mail containing a hyperlink to an
electronic form. FRA is asking for response by survey respondents within a few days of
receipt of the information as e-mails tend to get lost and respondents may forget about the
survey invitation. Reminder notices will be sent one week, two weeks, three weeks, one
month, and 45 days after the initial invitation is sent. Respondents will be given the
flexibility to respond at any time up to 60 days after the initial survey invitation is sent.
8. Compliance with 5 CFR 1320.8.
As required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, FRA published a 60-day notice in
the Federal Register on 7/31/2020, soliciting comment on the proposed data collection;
no comments were received. See 82 FR 15417. FRA published a 30-day notice in the
Federal Register on 7/25/2017 and received comments from the Association of American
Railroads (AAR). See 82 FR 34569.
Background
In 2007, FRA’s Office of Policy and Program Development conducted a study entitled
An Examination of Employee Recruitment and Retention in the U.S. Railroad Industry
which identified the recruitment and retention challenges that the U.S. freight railroad
industry faced, given the increase in the retirement-eligible population and growth in
freight railroad transportation. After conducting structured interviews and focus groups
with several industry stakeholders, it was determined that the lack of work-life balance
was a primary challenge to recruitment efforts, due to demanding work schedules, the
incremental pay rate system for particular craft positions, and the lack of an available
pipeline to train and develop qualified talent. The study also determined that relocation,
furloughs, misperceptions of job functions, and demanding work schedules made it
difficult for the industry to retain talent.
In early 2009, FRA was requested to support the DOT National Transportation
Workforce Development Strategy Initiative, led by DOT’s Office of the Secretary of
Transportation (OST). This initiative’s goal was to develop an Analytical Foundation to
outline the need for a national cross-modal approach to addressing transportation
workforce development challenges. Each DOT OA was asked to support the development
of the Analytical Foundation by developing a modal profile for its respective industry;
this profile identified the current state of the industry from a workforce perspective and it
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included challenges as well as potential solutions. In response to OST’s request, Ms.
Monique Stewart was designated as the FRA Workforce Development Lead and the
FRA-Workforce Development Team (WDT) was formed (see Figure 1). The FRA-WDT
consists of representatives from the FRA Office of Research and Development, FRA
Office of Railroad Safety, railroad academia, and a Subject Matter Expert (SME) in
Human Capital Planning.

Figure 1: FRA-WDT Focus, Scope, and Accomplishments

The FRA-WDT focuses on external (non-FRA) industry perspectives and convenes
regularly to discuss FRA industry related workforce development data calls and actions.
Additionally, several projects have been initiated to expand the outreach function of the
FRA-WDT, some of which are highlighted in Table 1. The FRA-WDT is continuously
considering innovative projects that may improve the industry’s awareness of workforce
issues, heighten the level of perception regarding the nuances of the rail industry
workforce, or otherwise contribute to promoting the interest of the broader rail industry
across the active labor force.
Table 1: FRA-WDT Program Activities Summary
Project Name
Web-based PreK – 12 Outreach
Portal

Project Description
A prototype STEM-based outreach portal for elementary school-aged
students and their teachers to learn about railroad technology, occupations,
and community importance.

High Speed Rail Learning
System (HSRLS)

A prototype online learning system to deliver high-speed rail and other rail
related courses to the public in an effort to develop the skills needed to
support and sustain the U.S. high-speed rail system.

Railway Engineering Education
Symposium (REES) Scholarship

A collegiate sponsorship for faculty to participate in the annual REES
where railroad engineering education is highlighted.

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With the FRA-WDT established, efforts to develop the Railroad Industry Modal Profile
commenced in 2010. Expanding upon the recruitment and retention study conducted by
FRA three year’s prior, the FRA-WDT conducted focused discussions with several
industry stakeholders representing academia, associations, Class I freight railroads, labor
unions, and state Departments of Transportation, among others, to fully understand the
railroad industry workforce. Each industry stakeholder participated in an informal dialog
about the current state of the railroad industry and the railroad industry workforce, as
well as their thoughts on the future of the railroad workforce. The information from the
collected dialogs is presented in Table 2. Once the key challenges had been identified, the
FRA-WDT defined the workforce development program’s areas of focus (depicted in
Figure 2), which serves as the action framework for which industry workforce
development efforts can be aligned. Elements can be added or removed from the
conceptual action framework, as the nature of the railroad industry continues to evolve.
Table 2: Top Railroad Industry Challenges – 2011 Report

#
1
2
3
4

5

6

Workforce
Challenge
Aging Workforce –
Knowledge Transfer
Workforce Diversity
(Women, Minorities,
Other)
Overall Image of the
Industry
National Training
Standards for Freight
Rail Trade and Craft
Positions
Work-Life Balance
(Attrition in the 0-5
Year Population of
Rail Employees)
Quality of Data and
Metrics Available to
Monitor Rail Industry
Workforce Trends

Academia
■

■

Associations

Class I
Railroads

FRA

Labor
Unions

Short Lines
& Regionals

■

■

■

■

■

■

■

■

■

■

■
■

■

■

■

■

■

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Each workforce challenge was then aligned with one or more of the FRA-WDT program
focus areas. This mapping allowed the team to maintain focus on each challenge while
workforce activities and projects were executed. Table 3 shows how the program
elements were aligned to the key challenges.
Table 3: FRA Workforce Development Program Element
Mapping to 2011 Railroad Industry Challenges

#

Workforce
Challenge

FRA Workforce Development Program Element

4

National Training Standards for Freight
Rail Trade and Craft Positions

Pipeline Programs: PreK-12; Collegiate; Trade &
Craft
Pipeline Programs: PreK-12; Collegiate; Trade &
Craft
Pipeline Programs: PreK-12; Collegiate; Trade &
Craft
Qualitative Enhancements: Current Workforce
Development

5

Work-Life Balance (Attrition in the 0-5
Year Population of Rail Employees)

Pipeline Programs: PreK-12; Collegiate; Trade &
Craft

6

Quality of Data and Metrics Available to
Monitor Rail Industry Workforce Trends

Qualitative Enhancements: Data & Metrics

1 Aging Workforce – Knowledge Transfer
2

Workforce Diversity (Women,
Minorities, Other)

3 Overall Image of the Industry

The FRA–WDT did not attempt to directly solve railroad workforce challenges; instead,
the group encouraged industry-wide collaboration that: 1) fosters broader industry dialog
and 2) brings cohesion to the efforts of individual organizations expended on workforce
development.
The 2011 publication of the Railroad Industry Modal Profile was well received by the
railroad community and the general public. In fact, the document was cited by the
industry workforce related publications and initiatives shown in Table 4.

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Table 4: 2011 Railroad Industry Modal Profile References in Industry

Date

Event/Organization

Publication/Initiative

March 2011

American Society of
Mechanical Engineers
(ASME) Joint Rail
Conference (JRC)
1st World Congress on
Rail Training

“Railroad Industry Workforce Assessment – Next Steps:
Working Together To Shape the Rail Workforce of the 21st
Century” publication

April 2011
April 2012
2013
2013

2016

National
Transportation
Workforce Summit
Transportation
Research Board (TRB)
U. S. Department of
Labor Employment
and Training
Administration
Transportation
Research Board (TRB)

“Railroad Industry Workforce Assessment – Next Steps:
Working Together to Shape the Rail Workforce of The 21st
Century” publication
“Railroad Industry Workforce Assessment – Next Steps:
Working Together to Shape the Rail Workforce of the 21st
Century” publication
National Cooperative Rail Research Program (NCRRP)
Project 06-01: Building and Retaining Workforce Capacity
for the Railroad Industry
Transportation, Distribution, and Logistics Competency
Model
Railroad Industry Modal Profile: An Outline of the Railroad
Industry Workforce Trends, Challenges, and Opportunities
– Update

As a continuation of efforts, FRA–WDT is establishing an industry survey of workforce
related issues that will be conducted every two years. The results of this survey and the
collection of other industry data will be an update to the Modal Profile and serve as a
basis for industry-wide collaboration regarding workforce activities.
9.

Payments or gifts to respondents.
There are no monetary payments provided or gifts made to respondents associated with
this proposed collection of information.

10.

Assurance of confidentiality.
FRA fully complies with all laws pertaining to confidentiality, including the Privacy Act
of 1974. Thus, information obtained or acquired by FRA in this survey will be used
exclusively to compile data to describe the status and challenges of workforce issues
among railroad employees throughout the United States.
To ensure confidentiality for respondents, no individual survey responses will be released
and data will only be reported as group means or aggregate summaries. Participants will
be advised before commencing the survey that the survey is anonymous. However, as
FRA does not currently have a formal rule or official policy which provides an assurance
of confidentiality, participants will be advised that FRA cannot assure confidentiality.

11.

Justification for any questions of a sensitive nature.
This survey will not ask respondents questions regarding sexual behavior and attitudes,
religious beliefs, or other matters that would be considered private or of a sensitive
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nature. Participation in this proposed study by railroad industry employees is completely
voluntary. The survey will ask respondents questions tapping into their experience and
expertise related to workforce development practices and activities. Although these
questions will only focus on workforce issues, each question has a “prefer not to answer”
option, so respondents may opt out of answering any of the survey questions.
12.

Estimate of burden hours for information collected.
The chart below provides a breakdown on the estimated burden for participants to
respond to the survey.
Based on pre-testing, it will take approximately 25 minutes for a respondent to complete
the survey. The increase in survey invitations from the original survey is based on the
desire to cast a broader request for input, to include more potential respondents and
improve the overall value of the data collected.
Table 5: Estimated Burden
Workforce Development
Professionals

Passenger Railroads
Class 1 Freight Railroads
Short Line & Regional
Railroads
Labor Unions (with specific
focus on workforce
membership and railroad
programs)
Associations (with focus on
railroad workforce
membership and the rail
industry)
Academia (Learning
institutions with dedicated
curriculum and training
programs for railroad
industry).

Total
Annual
Responses

Respondent
Universe

Average Time
(minutes) per
Response

Total
Annual
Burden
Hours

Total Annual
Dollar Cost
Equivalent

35

12.00

25.00

5.00

$204.95

7

50.00

25.00

20.83

$853.96

752

125.00

25.00

52.08

$2,134.90

15

7.00

25.00

2.92

$119.55

20

10.00

25.00

4.17

$170.79

18

9.00

25.00

3.75

$153.71

TOTAL
847.00
213.00
150.00
88.75
$3,637.86
*The average hourly salary rate for a respondent is $40.99, based on an estimated median annual salary of $85,260,
per U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics for a Management Analyst 13-1111. Estimated total cost to respondent: 88.75
hours x $40.99 per hour = $3,.637.86.

13.

Estimate of total annual costs to respondents.
Other than the hourly wage cost associated in question number 12 above, there will be no
additional cost burden to respondents beyond any customary and usual expenses
associated with private practices. Further, respondents will not be required to keep any
records associated with this data collection effort.
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14.

Estimate of Cost to Federal Government.
Resources
FRA Supervisor
FRA Specialist
Contractor*

Estimated Hours
8
24
80

$/Hour
$120
$100
$150

Total Cost/Survey

Total
960
2,400
12,000
$15,360

* Contractor to develop survey questions and on-line resource for hosting the survey leveraging
a Survey Monkey account.

15.

Explanation of program changes and adjustments.
This proposed survey is an enhanced update to previously collected information
documented in various workforce development research products. Therefore, this is not
considered a program change. The collection method, an electronic survey, is the same
as was previously utilized in the 2018 workforce development survey.
The estimate number of respondents in each category were reviewed and updated,
therefore, the total number of expected respondents and thus burden hours were adjusted,
which resulted in a light increase. There are no program changes.
There is no additional cost to respondents.

16.

Publication of results of data collection.
The survey data will be published in an update to the Modal Profile. The update is
estimated for publication approximately 9-12 months after the completion of data
collection.
Data collection will begin as soon as possible after the date of OMB approval, and
continue every two years thereafter. Data collection will be completed within 120 days
of commencement. Current plans call for analysis to be completed within two months of
the end of data collection.

17.

Approval for not displaying the expiration date for OMB approval.
Once OMB approval is received, the FRA will publish the approval number for these
information collection requirements in the Federal Register.

18.

Exception to certification statement.
No exceptions are taken at this time.

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