Montana’s Unemployment Rate Below 3% For 21st Consecutive Month

• — August 21 2023

More Montanans Working Today Than Ever Before

HELENA, Mont. – Governor Greg Gianforte today announced Montana’s unemployment rate in July is below 3% for the 21st consecutive month. The only other time Montana’s unemployment rate was below 3% was for three months in 2007, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Gov. Gianforte also announced Montana’s total employment reached an all-time high, with nearly 563,000 Montanans working in July.

Since Gov. Gianforte took office in January 2021, nearly 40,000 jobs have been created in Montana, the state’s unemployment rate has dropped from 4% to 2.5%, and the number of unemployed Montanans has fallen by more than 34%.

“Montana continues breaking records for job creation and employment because of Montanans’ hard work and our pro-jobs, pro-growth policies,” Gov. Gianforte said. “Skilled workers with our strong Montana work ethic are in high demand. We’ll continue to prioritize trades education and expand apprenticeship opportunities to empower Montana workers and ensure Montana employers have a highly skilled workforce.”

Total employment in Montana has grown every month of 2023, reaching a record high in July of 562,898 workers.

In July, Montana’s labor force also grew by more than 600 workers, adding 7,500 workers since the start of the year.

As in June, labor force growth slightly outpaced growth in total employment, leading to a slight increase in the state’s unemployment rate to 2.5%.

In July, the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) rose 0.2% over-the-month. Shelter was again the largest contributor to the increase, with motor vehicle insurance also contributing. The 12-month change in the all-items index was 3.2%, slightly more than the change for the 12 months ending in June. The index for all items minus food and energy, also called core inflation, increased by 0.2% for the month. For the year ending in July, core inflation was 4.7%.

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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 Data and Operations Bureau at 406-444-4100.

The next Labor Market Information report, including data from August 2023, will be released on Tuesday, September 19^th.

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. Visit www.lmi.mt.gov/home/job-tracking for Montana unemployment claims and current economic data.

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 2.4%.

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 2.4%. Reservation areas overlap with county areas, meaning that unemployed individuals living on a reservation will be included in both the reservation and county totals.

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Contacts:

Kaitlin Price, Office of the Governor

Jessica Nelson, Department of Labor and Industry

Contact Sam Loveridge: Public Information Officer, Department of Labor and Industry