Business Briefcase: Jobless rate, new CEO, St. Peter’s hires, governor visits businesses, and more

Montana’s unemployment rate was 3.3% in September, continuing a record stretch of low unemployment and below the national rate of 4.1%, Gov. Greg Gianforte said Tuesday.

This continues a record of 39 consecutive months with the rate at or below 3.4%. The next closest stretch was during 2006 and 2007, when the state’s unemployment rate remained at or below 3.4% for 15 consecutive months, the governor’s staff said.

In a recent report, the Montana Department of Labor and Industry announced that under Gianforte’s leadership, Montana’s labor force reached a record high of 580,000 people in 2023, with more than 10,000 Montanans entering the labor force last year alone.

Total employment remained mostly unchanged in September with about 1,100 people entering the labor market. Payroll employment rose by 1,500 jobs in September, with health care and professional services leading private sector gains.

St. Peter’s Health recently welcomed new staff.

Hanna Mackie, DO earned her medical degree at Pacific Northwest University of Health Sciences in Yakima, Washington.

She received a bachelor of science in health and human performance and exercise science from Montana State University.

Mackie completed her residency at Peak Vista Community Health Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado. She is a member of American Medical Women’s Association, American Osteopathic Association, American Association of Family Physicians and American Academy of Developmental Medicine and Dentistry.

She is accepting new patients at the St. Peter’s Health Medical Group – North Clinic.

Dr. Karine Darbinyan earned her medical degree at Russian National Research Medical University in Moscow, Russia.

She completed her internal medicine residencies in Moscow and Jacobi Medical Center in the Bronx, New York, and her fellowship in hematology and oncology at Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx, New York.

Darbinyan is a member of the American Society of Clinical Oncology and the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer. She is a general hematologist oncologist who is ready for any new challenge, but is particularly interested in lung, head and neck cancer as well as supportive cancer care. She is delivering care at the St. Peter’s Health Regional Medical Center.

Hospitalist Tyler Harwood, DO earned his medical degree from Midwestern University in Glendale, Arizona, and his bachelor of science in biomedical sciences from Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, Arizona. He completed his internal medicine residency at Creighton University in Phoenix, Arizona.

Hospitalist Melissa Blue graduated with her associate of science in nursing from Montana Tech in Butte in 2006. She earned her bachelor of science in nursing from South University in 2008, and her master of science in nursing from South University in Savannah, Georgia, in 2016.

Blue is certified by the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners. She is delivering care at the St. Peter’s Health Regional Medical Center.

Construction is moving forward on the new Stockman Bank located on the corner of 11th Avenue and Roberts Street.

The new state-of-the-art, three-story banking facility will include a 24-hour ATM, night depository and multi-lane drive-up, as well as offices for Stockman Insurance and tenant lease space. Construction is expected to be complete by the end of 2025.

Stockman Bank now has two Helena locations at 3094 N. Sanders St. and 5 W. Lyndale Ave.

Founded in 1953, Stockman is Montana’s largest, family-owned, community bank, with convenient full-service locations across the state. To learn more visit www.stockmanbank.com.

Gov. Greg Gianforte recently made stops in East Helena and Townsend as his 56 county tour drew to an end.

Earlier this month he visited the Townsend Mercantile to spotlight the women-owned business.

“Small businesses are the backbone of our economy for the good-paying jobs they create and the investment they make in our communities,” Gianforte said in a news release, adding it was great to spotlight the hard work of three Montana women adding vibrancy to Townsend and showcasing the best of Montana products.

Opening in June, the mercantile is home to three Montana merchants: Little Creek Feed, J Rock Jewelry, and C Hangin’ C Mercantile and Creamery.

Talking with the Owner Caroline Nelson of Little Creek Feed, a sheep and cattle operation founded in 2017, the governor heard more about how the three female business owners came up with the idea to buy the building that was once home to Rocky Mountain Supply.

“We raise all this great food, so we thought what if we made a combination feed store and food store. And what if we brought in other local foods and we source as much as we could from right around us? And then Cassie, Jess, and I — Cassie is the owner of C Hangin’ C Mercantile, and Jess of J Rock Jewelry — our small businesses were all homeless at the time so we thought maybe if we all work together, we could afford this space,” Nelson said.

Later in the month, Gianforte visited the American Chemet headquarters in East Helena.

Founded in 1946, American Chemet Corp. is a manufacturer and a global supplier of metal-based chemicals for a wide variety of industries including agriculture, lumber, automotive, and roofing.

Visiting with CEO Bill Shropshire and Vice President Joe Baumgart, the governor learned more about of American Chemet’s use of over 70 million pounds of recycled copper each year to create cuprous oxide, cupric oxide, fungicides, copper powders, and basic copper carbonate.

With nearly 150 full-time employees, the company has also expanded to offering apprenticeships. Partnering with the Montana ring Extension Center, American Chemet offers paid, supervised on-the-job training to new and recently hired production employees in entry level positions.

The company offers a Certified Manufacturing Associate Apprenticeship as a one-year training program to Montanans over the age of 16 that combines time on the job with online courses to help apprentices learn basic manufacturing concepts and gain high-demand skills. After successful completion of the work hours, course requirements and exam, apprentices receive certificates from the Montana Department of Labor and Industry and the Society of Manufacturing Engineers.

The visit to the facility marks the end of the governor’s 56 County Tour that launched in April in Meagher County.

To learn more about Montana’s Registered Apprenticeship Program administered by the Montana Department of Labor and Industry, go to: https://apprenticeship.mt.gov/.

Stephanie Cole is the new chief executive officer of Red Ants Pants, a White Sulphur Springs-based company that makes workwear for women.

Cole is a fourth generation Montanan who brings business expertise to the job, including her experience of running an Inc. 5000 company, working with global corporations, and growing high-performing teams. Red Ants Pants founder and owner Sarah Calhoun will continue in her current role and says Cole brings added firepower to the team.

“We’re thrilled to have Stephanie join the team as someone who deeply understands our roots and our mission and has the proven track record and vision necessary to take Red Ants Pants to the next level,” said Calhoun.

Cole has 15+ years of experience building and leading high-performing teams. She has served as a mentor in the Red Ants Pants Foundation Girls Leadership Program, was selected for the “20 Under 40” award by the Bozeman Daily Chronicle’s Business Journal in 2015, and named Montana State University’s Young Alumni of the year in 2016 for coaching and mentoring MSU students.

“As the first company dedicated to women’s workwear, I’ve always admired Red Ants Pants and how it has built a loyal following through integrity, heart, and an incredible amount of hard work. I am honored to keep growing its impact in its home state of Montana and beyond,” said Cole.

Red Ants Pants is planning the release of new products and a relaunch of the company in 2025

Maddy Adams, Kate Martin and Steve Youde of the Helena Association of Realtors are 2024 graduates of the Montana Association of Realtors Graduate Realtor Institute.

The GRI designation is the mark of a real estate professional who has made the commitment to provide a high level of professional services by securing a strong educational foundation.

In Montana, a GRI graduate must complete over 60 hours of training over three years before receiving the GRI designation.

KLJ Engineering said Jonah Winchester recently earned his Professional Land Surveyor license from the Montana Board of Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors.

The process to obtain the license in Montana involves rigorous standards, including passing the Principles and Practices of Land Surveying exam and the Montana Law, State-Specific Land Surveying Examination. Applicants must also meet substantial educational and professional experience requirements, such as completing a board-approved degree or gaining extensive field experience under the supervision of a licensed surveyor. Winchester met these criteria through his nine years of professional experience.

As a senior survey crew chief at KLJ, Winchester has more than 13 years of experience across various surveying disciplines including cadastral, corridor, utility, control surveys, and private land boundary retracements. His expertise includes generation of certificates of survey, topographical and bathymetric surveys, and construction layouts. Winchester earned his certification in geomatics technologies and engineering technologies from Southwestern Community College.

The Montana Department of Commerce announced Wednesday the city of Boulder was among 10 Montana communities that will share $1.5 million in grant funding to regenerate Main Street businesses and downtown locations. The funding is provided by Commerce’s Montana Main Street Program.

The Montana Main Street Program works with local partners to identify and plan for a community’s greatest developmental needs and provides seed money to help implement high-impact projects.

The City of Boulder will receive $150,000 in support of the Boulder Rocks LLC adaptive reuse and mixed-use project.

Other communities that will receive funding include Billings, the City/County of Butte-Silver Bow, Ekalaka, Hardin, Libby, Miles City, Ronan, Roundup and Shelby.

“Main Street grants help Montana communities strengthen and preserve their historic downtown commercial districts through economic development, revitalization and historic preservation by leveraging long-range planning, organization, design and promotion,” said Paul Green, director of the Montana Department of Commerce.

For more information about the Montana Main Street Program, visit commerce.mt.gov.

The Helena – Lewis and Clark National Forest in Montana is looking to fill temporary wildland firefighter positions.

It is looking for folks interested in positions on engine crews, suppression modules, helicopter crews, wildland fire use modules, hotshot crews, and even fire lookouts.

Duty locations are spread throughout the forest’s 2.8 million acres, including Augusta, Great Falls, Harlowton, Helena, Lincoln, Neihart, Stanford, Townsend and White Sulphur Springs.

Wildland firefighters perform tasks to reduce the risk of wildfire impacting values such as life, property, and infrastructure. These tasks include but are not limited to utilizing aircraft to drop water on an incident, running chainsaws and other mechanical equipment to reduce susceptible fuels to a flaming front, running hoses from engines to get water closer to a fire, and constructing line with various hand tools.

They also assist in prescribed fire across the landscape to further reduce risk of wildfire impacting values. The diversity in crew types provide versatility to the mission of caring for the lands and serving the people.

The application portal is open and will be closing at 9:59 p.m. Nov. 6. To apply, go on to USAJobs.gov and search the announcement number (1039) of the position you are interested in.

If you would like to get in contact with someone for more information about positions, please visit: www.fs.usda.gov/main/hlcnf/about-forest/jobs.