(The following story by Michael Hooper appeared on The Capital-Journal website on October 9.)
TOPEKA, Kan. — Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp. is moving 25 clerical jobs to Topeka from St. Paul, Minn., a company official said Wednesday.
It is the positions, not the people, that are coming to town. In an effort to hire area residents, the railroad held a presentation Wednesday evening about the jobs at Washburn University, drawing more than 100 people.
“We have a number of clerical staff in St. Paul retiring,” said Joe Faust, BNSF spokesman. “As they retire, we’re transferring some of the work to Topeka.”
The jobs pay $39,000 to $44,000 per year — which means the 25 jobs will bring another $1 million in payroll, plus benefits, to Topeka.
“In today’s economy, we’ll take any good news we can get, especially jobs of this quality,” said Doug Kinsinger, president and chief executive officer of the Greater Topeka Chamber of Commerce.
The job openings are time keeper, payroll clerk, accounting representative, railcar accounting clerk, carrier service representative and manpower planning clerk. Employees will work in the BNSF office building at S.E. 10th and Quincy in downtown Topeka.
Qualifications include a high school diploma or General Educational Development degree, the ability to type 25 words per minute, ability to stand or sit for hours at a time and handle multiple projects simultaneously. Candidates also must have basic proficiency in Microsoft Outlook, Word and Excel.
The jobs will remain open until Sunday.
“It is our belief we will have a good talent pool to start with by that time,” Faust said.
New employees will start between Dec. 1 and 8, said Shinita Hishaw, BNSF human resources manager for finance in Topeka.
“We have a need for employees in these areas,” Faust said. “As the jobs transition from St. Paul to Topeka, we will need immediate assistance in those areas.”
Kinsinger said BNSF has been consolidating both clerical and shop jobs in Topeka.
“BNSF has a major office facility downtown and their shop operations in Topeka,” Kinsinger said. “That encourages them to consolidate here. They’ve obviously been very happy with the work force here. They seem to be pleased with the productivity of our work force in Topeka.”
A few years ago, BNSF moved its Burlington, Iowa, shop workers to its locomotive repair shops in Topeka.
BNSF has about 1,200 employees in the capital city.
“By consolidating jobs at the shops and the office facility, this bodes well for our future with BNSF,” Kinsinger said.
In challenging economic times, Kinsinger said, BNSF has been strong because it moves freight more efficiently than trucks.
BNSF has a long heritage in Topeka.
Cyrus Holliday, a co-founder of Topeka, was the founder of the Atchison Topeka & Santa Fe Railway in the mid-1800s. In 1995, the Santa Fe merged with Burlington Northern.
Holliday guided the development of the Santa Fe Railway, from the creation of its charter in 1859 through construction that began in Topeka on a cool and blustery day on Oct. 30, 1868. He lived to see the railroad reach the Great Lakes, Gulf of Mexico and California’s Pacific shore, his vision from the start.
BNSF is the second-largest railroad in the United States behind Union Pacific Railroad. It has about 40,000 employees.
Omaha, Neb., billionaire Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway is the largest shareholder of BNSF stock (NYSE: BNI), which closed Wednesday at $81.44 per share, down from its 52-week high of $114.58 set in June.
Last winter, Buffett was buying the stock below $80 per share.