Why Montana Workforce Shortages Persist
Hiring in Montana has always been competitive, but the reasons behind today’s labor shortage go deeper than most employers realize. Understanding what is actually driving the gap, which roles are hardest to fill, and what a smarter hiring strategy looks like can mean the difference between filling critical roles and watching them sit vacant for months.
Structural, Not Temporary: The Nature of the Montana Workforce Shortage
The 2025 Montana Labor Day Report shows there are nearly two job openings for every unemployed person in the state.¹ That means even if every unemployed worker found a job tomorrow, many positions would still go unfilled.
Montana has dealt with tight labor markets for decades, yet many employers still treat the shortage as a short-term problem. When that happens, they tend to respond in one of two ways: they delay hiring plans while waiting for the candidate pool to improve, or they keep the same hiring standards and grow frustrated when the right candidates never appear. Both responses share the same flawed assumption, which is that the labor market will eventually return to the way it was.
It will not. The workforce shortage Montana faces is structural, meaning it is built into the size and makeup of the state’s labor supply, and it will not resolve on its own. Montana simply has fewer workers available than the economy needs, and that gap is expected to grow. The share of people actively working or looking for work is projected to drop from about 63.1 percent in 2024 to roughly 61.4 percent by 2034.² A few percentage points may sound modest, but that shift represents thousands of workers leaving the active labor pool over the next decade. Employers who plan around this reality will be far better positioned than those who keep waiting for conditions to change.
Which Roles Are the Hardest to Fill Right Now?
Not every job is equally affected by workforce shortages. In Montana, the hardest roles to fill tend to fall into two categories.
High-turnover positions are a persistent challenge in food service, hospitality, and tourism. Workers in these industries frequently move between seasonal jobs, part-time roles, and different employers, which keeps a steady stream of openings that need to be filled over and over.
Specialized and skilled roles face a different problem: competition. Employers across the state are finding it most difficult to hire in computer and math-related fields, healthcare, legal professions, architecture and engineering, and the skilled trades. Demand in these areas is growing, but the number of qualified workers entering the workforce has not kept up.
The Real Drivers Behind Montana’s Labor Gaps
Workforce shortages rarely have a single cause. In Montana, several long-term forces are shaping the labor market at the same time.
An aging workforce is one of the most significant factors. Montana has one of the older populations in the country, and as experienced workers retire, they leave openings that are genuinely difficult to backfill. Nearly 340,000 Montanans are currently outside the labor force, and roughly 61 percent of them are age 55 or older.² Workers are exiting faster than new ones are entering.
Population growth that does not match job growth is compounding the problem. Montana’s economy has expanded quickly, but the workforce has not kept pace. Many new residents are retirees or remote workers whose employment does not connect with local employers, leaving businesses competing for the same limited pool of available workers.
Skills gaps make many open roles even harder to fill. Positions in accounting, engineering, healthcare, and the trades often require technical experience that few local candidates possess. Employers frequently find that applicants meet the basic qualifications but lack the specific skills the job demands.
Geographic and logistical barriers add another layer of difficulty. Montana’s communities are small and spread far apart, and housing costs, long commutes, and lifestyle preferences make relocation a hard sell for many candidates. Employers in smaller markets often face longer hiring timelines as a direct result.
Shifting worker expectations round out the picture. Competitive pay still matters, but today’s workers also weigh flexibility, benefits, workplace culture, and opportunities for growth. Employers who recognize and respond to these priorities tend to attract stronger applicants.
How Montana Employers Can Hire Smarter in 2026
Labor shortages are unlikely to ease in the near term, so the employers who adjust their strategies now will have a clear advantage in the years ahead.
Hire for Potential, Not Just Experience
Waiting for a perfect-match candidate leads to long vacancies that hurt operations. Widening hiring criteria opens the door to motivated workers who can grow into a role. A construction company can hire a general laborer and invest in equipment training. An accounting office can bring on a junior assistant and build their skills over time.
Create Clear Training and Development Paths
Companies that invest in structured onboarding, apprenticeships, or school partnerships tend to retain workers longer and build their own reliable pipeline of skilled employees.
Simplify and Speed Up the Hiring Process
Slow hiring drives away strong candidates. Reducing interview rounds, making offers sooner, and holding open hiring events where candidates can interview and complete paperwork in a single visit all help employers move at the pace today’s market requires.
Work With a Staffing Partner
Staffing firms reach candidates who are not actively searching job boards. They also bring current insight into wages, local talent availability, and realistic hiring timelines, which helps employers make smarter, faster decisions.
Let LC Staffing Help You Hire in a Tighter Market
Montana’s labor shortage is not going away, but with the right recruiting partner, you can stop waiting for the market to shift and start building a strategy that works now. LC Staffing has spent over 40 years working in Montana’s labor market. We know which roles are hardest to fill, what candidates expect, and how to move quickly when the right person is available. Connect with us today and get hiring support built around how Montana’s workforce actually works.
References
- Department of Labor and Industry. “Record High Labor Force, Continued Wage and Personal Income Growth Fuel Montana’s Economy.” Montana Department of Labor and Industry, 3 Sep. 2025, https://news.mt.gov/Department-of-Labor-and-Industry/labor-day-report
- Watson, Amy. 2025 Montana Labor Day Report. Montana Department of Labor and Industry, Sep. 2025, https://lmi.mt.gov/_docs/Publications/LMI-Pubs/Labor-Market-Publications/25_LaborDayReport_Final.pdf