A secondman or second man is a railway employee who assists the driver of a train.
With the ending of steam traction on many railways, the job of fireman or boilerman was made obsolete.
With increasing automation of rolling stock, many trains today only require the operation of a single driver, and thus this post has started to disappear.
However, it remains in many places, especially on heavy freight, express routes and night trains.
On heritage railways, where the older types of locomotives are still in use, the position of second man is still an important role filled by volunteers, and usually part of the training to become a driver.