We learned in the 80’s when all the air traffic control union members were fired that transportation unions have no power.
Fire them all.
This would not be a job where it's easy to replace people. It's really, really boring and you can't be check your phone while driving a train.
Rail industry has been cutting the workforce and trying extract as much profit as they can knowing that it's in an unsustainable death spiral. And it's not just engineers, but also maintenance, loaders, shipping, etc. All of this has been in terrible shape over the past decade, but it's been timely in that industry can wrap it all up in "COVID caused supply chain issues leading to inflation". It's not that at all, its a purposeful gutting of a vital industry.