BNSF’s safety vision is that every accident or injury is preventable and that requires a culture of commitment, resources, training, tools and technology. BNSF recently highlighted some examples of how women are putting their stamp on workplace safety.
Jessa Shepard, division engineer, Billings, Montana, joined BNSF in 1997 in the track maintenance department, working to ensure that the railroad tracks are safe and reliable. Today, her team maintains some 1,400 miles of single mainline track in the extreme conditions of Montana and portions of Wyoming and North Dakota. The relationships she’s cultivated with her team helped them to achieve a huge accomplishment in 2020: to complete the year injury-free.
Jennifer Muñoz, chief dispatcher for BNSF’s northern Powder River Division which includes eastern Wyoming, works with other dispatchers in BNSF’s command center, or Network Operations Center. While effective communication is essential for all BNSF operations, it is crucial for train dispatchers – the railroad’s version of air traffic controllers. It’s also critical to have a safety-oriented mindset, or as Muñoz puts it, “Safety has to be a lifestyle.”
BNSF is proud to have women like Shepard and Muñoz leading the safety charge. Learn more about these women and others here.
