Montana sees slight increase in unemployment rate in October

The October jobs data is out and unemployment is up slightly in Montana, continuing from September.

Montana’s unemployment rate rose by 0.1%, and now sits at 3%. Nationally, unemployment sits at 3.7%.

In a statement released by the Montana Department of Labor, Gov. Greg Gianforte’s office highlighted private sector job growth, pointing to around 1,800 new jobs mostly concentrated in the manufacturing, business services and food service industries.

These gains were offset by job cuts in other sectors, most notably among state government positions. According to state labor statistics, the state government cut around 1,400 jobs last month, which represents over 5% of their workforce.

Department of Labor Chief of Staff John Elizandro attributed the numbers to a reduction in seasonal fire suppression workers and reductions within the state higher education system.

Total employment dipped slightly by 257 jobs statewide in October.

Flathead County is still underperforming the state as a whole, with a non-adjusted unemployment rate of 2.9% last month. For comparison, this is higher than Montana’s non-adjusted unemployment rate of 2.6%, the figure that is typically used to compare with county-level statistics. This leaves Flathead County ranked 41st out of Montana’s 56 counties, and last among counties with more than 50,000 people eligible to be counted among the workforce.

The prices of goods and services continued to increase, but the inflation rate did slow in October compared to last month. According to the Department of Labor statement, half of the rise in prices was driven by increasing housing costs.

Reporter Adrian Knowler can be reached at aknowler@dailyinterlake.com or 758-4407.