Governor Steve Bullock today announced that Montana’s unemployment rate decreased by 0.1 percentage points to 3.7% for the month of March. The national unemployment rate was unchanged at 3.8%.
“We must continue to educate and train our workforce through existing programs, such as apprenticeship and traineeship, while instilling career readiness skills in the next generation of Montanans,” said Governor Bullock. “I also encourage businesses to look for innovative ways to recruit and retain qualified employees and advocate for policy that supports working families, such as publicly funded preschool education, equal pay legislation, and flexible scheduling.”
Total employment estimates indicate a gain of 326 jobs, while payroll employment posted no change over the month, suggesting that tight labor markets are constraining job growth. Montana’s labor force grew by roughly 100 people over the month, less than the number of jobs added to the economy. Businesses continue to report difficulty finding available workers.
The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) increased 0.4% in March with a sizeable increase in the energy index. The index for all items less food and energy, also called core inflation, increased 0.1% in March.
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** Unemployment figures are seasonally-adjusted. Seasonally-adjusted numbers remove the effects of events that follow a more or less regular month-to-month pattern each year. These adjustments make non-seasonal patterns easier to identify. The margin of error for the unemployment rate is plus or minus 0.5 percentage points at the 90 percent confidence level. All questions relating to the calculation of unemployment rates should be directed to the Montana Department of Labor & Industry’s Research and Analysis Bureau at 406-444-4100.
The next Labor Situation Report for the month of April 2019 will be released on Friday, May 17, 2019.
**** INFORMATION AVAILABLE ON THE INTERNET ****
Visit our website at www.lmi.mt.gov for additional information and analysis, including industry employment levels, background on the unemployment rate, and wage rates by occupation. This month’s Economy at a Glance focuses on job turnover and worker churn.
****** COUNTY UNEMPLOYMENT RATES ******
The unemployment rate and ranking for each of Montana’s 56 counties is provided below for your convenience. County unemployment rates and employment levels are not seasonally adjusted and should be compared to the unadjusted statewide unemployment rate of 4.1%.
|
|
Unemployment Rate
|
Employment
|
|
Rank
|
County
|
Current Unemployment Rate
|
Change over Year
|
Current Employment
|
Job Change from Last Year
|
|
1
|
McCone
|
1.9
|
0.1
|
922
|
-20
|
|
2
|
Fallon
|
2.3
|
-0.1
|
1,582
|
-33
|
|
3
|
Daniels
|
2.4
|
0.0
|
823
|
-27
|
|
4
|
Gallatin
|
2.5
|
-0.3
|
64,662
|
1,754
|
|
5
|
Dawson
|
2.6
|
-0.6
|
4,507
|
-17
|
|
5
|
Toole
|
2.6
|
-0.5
|
2,001
|
-31
|
|
7
|
Liberty
|
2.8
|
0.5
|
924
|
5
|
|
7
|
Sheridan
|
2.8
|
0.3
|
1,651
|
-67
|
|
7
|
Sweet Grass
|
2.8
|
-0.9
|
1,644
|
-29
|
|
10
|
Wibaux
|
3
|
-0.7
|
414
|
-28
|
|
11
|
Chouteau
|
3.1
|
-0.3
|
2,356
|
30
|
|
11
|
Garfield
|
3.1
|
-0.1
|
685
|
-8
|
|
11
|
Powder River
|
3.1
|
-0.5
|
886
|
-37
|
|
11
|
Richland
|
3.1
|
-0.8
|
5,569
|
-46
|
|
15
|
Beaverhead
|
3.5
|
-0.1
|
4,772
|
-5
|
|
15
|
Deer Lodge
|
3.5
|
-0.7
|
4,821
|
-75
|
|
15
|
Lewis and Clark
|
3.5
|
-0.4
|
34,316
|
500
|
|
18
|
Custer
|
3.6
|
-0.7
|
5,754
|
-102
|
|
18
|
Madison
|
3.6
|
-0.2
|
4,741
|
6
|
|
20
|
Valley
|
3.7
|
-0.4
|
3,776
|
-96
|
|
20
|
Yellowstone
|
3.7
|
-0.1
|
78,422
|
403
|
|
22
|
Carter
|
3.8
|
-0.1
|
613
|
1
|
|
22
|
Judith Basin
|
3.8
|
-0.5
|
877
|
37
|
|
22
|
Missoula
|
3.8
|
-0.2
|
61,593
|
1,048
|
|
22
|
Prairie
|
3.8
|
-0.8
|
459
|
5
|
|
26
|
Hill
|
3.9
|
0.1
|
7,195
|
-175
|
|
26
|
Teton
|
3.9
|
-0.3
|
2,565
|
60
|
|
26
|
Wheatland
|
3.9
|
-1.3
|
715
|
-2
|
|
29
|
Cascade
|
4
|
-0.2
|
36,807
|
547
|
|
30
|
Jefferson
|
4.1
|
-0.5
|
5,404
|
77
|
|
30
|
Meagher
|
4.1
|
-0.3
|
944
|
0
|
|
30
|
Stillwater
|
4.1
|
-0.2
|
4,775
|
113
|
|
33
|
Broadwater
|
4.3
|
-0.4
|
2,511
|
31
|
|
33
|
Park
|
4.3
|
-0.6
|
8,216
|
197
|
|
35
|
Carbon
|
4.4
|
0.0
|
5,251
|
16
|
|
35
|
Petroleum
|
4.4
|
-1.2
|
260
|
-8
|
|
35
|
Silver Bow
|
4.4
|
-0.3
|
16,409
|
21
|
|
35
|
Treasure
|
4.4
|
0.7
|
325
|
15
|
|
39
|
Fergus
|
4.5
|
-0.8
|
5,462
|
46
|
|
39
|
Phillips
|
4.5
|
-2.1
|
1,780
|
36
|
|
41
|
Powell
|
4.7
|
-0.9
|
2,667
|
26
|
|
42
|
Blaine
|
4.8
|
-0.3
|
2,136
|
-55
|
|
42
|
Musselshell
|
4.8
|
-0.2
|
2,066
|
-123
|
|
42
|
Pondera
|
4.8
|
0.3
|
2,551
|
6
|
|
45
|
Lake
|
4.9
|
0.0
|
12,441
|
41
|
|
46
|
Golden Valley
|
5
|
-0.2
|
345
|
0
|
|
47
|
Ravalli
|
5.1
|
0.2
|
19,020
|
149
|
|
48
|
Roosevelt
|
5.3
|
0.0
|
4,141
|
-51
|
|
49
|
Rosebud
|
5.8
|
-0.3
|
3,562
|
-49
|
|
50
|
Flathead
|
5.9
|
0.1
|
44,678
|
583
|
|
51
|
Granite
|
6.1
|
-0.3
|
1,630
|
26
|
|
52
|
Mineral
|
6.8
|
-2.8
|
1,585
|
88
|
|
53
|
Sanders
|
7.7
|
-1.0
|
4,365
|
73
|
|
54
|
Big Horn
|
8.7
|
-2.2
|
4,335
|
-289
|
|
55
|
Glacier
|
8.8
|
0.4
|
4,969
|
-59
|
|
55
|
Lincoln
|
8.8
|
-0.8
|
7,266
|
110
|
****** RESERVATION UNEMPLOYMENT RATES ******
The unemployment rate and ranking for each of Montana’s seven reservations is provided below. Reservation unemployment rates and employment levels are not seasonally adjusted and should be compared to the unadjusted statewide unemployment rate of 4.1%. Reservation areas overlap with county areas, meaning that unemployed individuals living on a reservation will be included in both the reservation and county totals.
|
|
Unemployment Rate
|
Employment
|
|
Rank
|
County
|
Current Unemployment Rate
|
Change over Year
|
Current Employment
|
Job Change from Last Year
|
|
1
|
Flathead
|
5.2
|
-0.1
|
12,854
|
729
|
|
2
|
Fort Peck
|
6.7
|
-0.1
|
3,984
|
213
|
|
3
|
Fort Belknap
|
10.8
|
-1.5
|
789
|
69
|
|
4
|
Rocky Boy's
|
11.7
|
-0.1
|
1,176
|
124
|
|
5
|
Blackfeet
|
12.2
|
0.4
|
4,011
|
452
|
|
6
|
Crow
|
12.9
|
-3.2
|
2,543
|
197
|
|
7
|
Northern Cheyenne
|
14.3
|
-1.1
|
1,436
|
164
|
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