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farm406
farm finance
People may be moving because of changing employment
opportunities. The Montana Department of Labor collects
data on total employment (however, self-employed
individuals are not included in this particular data). The
changes in employment show employment growth in
nearly all of the counties in the eastern 1/3 of the state.
Employment declined in most of the north central Montana
and some counties in south central Montana. Interestingly
employment declines occurred in Yellowstone, Cascade,
Flathead and Silver Bow counties.
Another way to look at employment is to examine the
change in the number of business establishments. The data
shows a map that resembles a checker board in most of
eastern Montana with areas of growth and decline varying
between neighboring counties. Growth is more common
along the North Dakota border and a solid block of counties
with declines is noticeable in north western Montana.
What factors might be influencing these changes?
This data certainly highlights the impact that oil and gas
development in the Bakken region has had on employment
in eastern Montana counties. Even though this data's
ending point is after the peak of the Bakken development in
Montana, this region has higher levels of employment than
before the Bakken development began. The agriculture
Population Change: 2007 to 2016
Change in Employment: 2007 to 2016
