The upcoming shutdown of a Montana lumber mill will leave 140 out of work. Still, several companies are looking for new employees. A new high-tech company in Rapid City, S.D., plans to hire 100 employees in the two years. The construction of a poultry litter-fired power plant in western Minnesota will require 300 workers. Some manufacturers are expanding outside the district due to a lack of available labor, according to a bank director.
Wages continue to increase at a moderate pace.
About three of five respondents to the Minneapolis Fed's business conditions survey expect a modest increase in wages for their communities in 2001. A December survey of manufacturers in the Dakotas, Minnesota and Wisconsin shows that about 48 percent of respondents have raised wages over the past two months compared with 53 percent a year ago. Overall price increases are moderate, but significant increases are noted for energy, apartment rental rates, health care and package delivery. The cost to heat homes this winter has doubled in many district locations. Apartment rental rates increased 11 percent in the Minneapolis-St.