Union Pacific's latest specially-painted engine, UP 1979, is on display at North Yard, UP's main yard in Denver. This scheme is known as the "We are ONE" scheme, and it depicts the nine Employee Resource Groups that UP offers for its employees.
-- The nine groups are as follows:
AERO - Asian Employee Resource Organization
BEN - Black Employee Network
BRIDGES - LGBT Employee Network
CONAH - Council of Native American Heritage
EASE - Educate. Advance. Support. Encourage.
LEAD - Women's Advancement: Lead. Education. Achieve. Develop.
LEN - Latino Employee Network
TIES - Connecting Employees. Uniting Communities. Emerging Professionals
VETS - Veterans and Employees Continuing to Serve. --
The first of these resource groups, BEN, was established by UP in 1979, hence the choice for the number of the unit. It is interesting that UP decided to repaint an SD70M, rather than a more recent SD70ACe or ET44AC. Regardless, UP set up an area at North Yard where employees could check out the unit. A tent was even set up to shield onlookers from the sun. Several chairs were set up underneath the tent. The bustle of the railroad work day continues in the yard in the background. For those roster buffs out there, UP 1979 was formerly UP 4332.
Not
just heritage schemes, not just commemorative schemes - this album is devoted to some of the world's most interesting paint schemes, past or present.