Summer 2019 was a great season for business, but a hard time for the businesses themselves. From Bigfork to Whitefish, employers confronted a workforce shortage more extreme than they had ever experienced before. Even as business boomed, many managers and owners resorted to cutting hours and services to meet the growing demand with shrinking staffs.

“It’s been a hard summer,” related Dave Sheeran, manager of Whitefish’s Second Street Pizza, The Remington Bar and Mama Blanca’s. “Business is great. The only problem is staffing. This year it seemed insurmountable.”