COLUMBUS — Many around Stillwater County are bracing for the worst after the Sibanye Stillwater mine announced that it would be laying off 680 employees starting on Nov. 12, 2024.
According to mine officials, the decision was made due to the decreasing price of palladium, which is the mine 's largest output.
The layoffs aren't new to mine families, who are used to constant turnover.
"They've laid off people before," said Sara Hape, a former Stillwater Mine employee's wife. "The industry just ebbs and flows."
The Hapes are one of the many families who would've likely been affected by the most recent layoffs, which also came with significant reductions at the company's three major operations in southern Montana.
"We've seen this before," said Hape. "It was just a different situation than this one."
Hape said she believes there's more anxiousness with the most recent layoffs, but they won't impact her family.
About two months ago, the Hapes moved out of Columbus to South Carolina due to the mine struggles.
"(My husband) would be so upset about everything at work that it would change his attitude at home," Hape said. "I think he realized that he was getting to that point again and didn't want to do it."
Hape said the decision to move was a tough one. Her husband had worked there for 20 years and had always lived in Montana.
"It was really hard for him," Hape said. "But I think it would've been harder to go through this now and not know what we were going to do."
It isn't just families that are likely to be affected. Real estate broker Sean Russell, who lives in Columbus, said the impact could extend to homes, businesses and schools.
"You feel for all of the families that are involved in this right now, you really do," said Russell. "We don't really know what the impacts going to be yet but I'm sure it's obviously going to be an impact on all of us."
Russell said it's hard to predict just how devastating the layoffs could be for the local economy. In the real estate world, he fears that it could lead to people moving away from Columbus, leaving more homes on the market with a steep drop in their price.
"We don't know yet of how many of those people are going to move or how many are going to stay here," Russell said. "There's a lot of unknowns right now."
Stillwater County Commissioner Tyrel Hamilton was out of town on Monday but spoke with MTN on the phone and provided a statement, in which he hinted at the commissioners seeing the writing on the wall for the struggling mine.
The county receives direct payments to support public services based on its output.
"Anticipating lower than normal revenue caused by the low price of palladium, we cut nearly $2.5 million from the 2024-25 budget," said Hamilton in the statement. "We will now look for ways we can support the economic base in Stillwater County through our Economic Development and Planning Department."
With lots of uncertainties still, one thing is certain: there will be big changes for many in Stillwater County.
"It's going to take a lot out of the local economy without having everybody there," Hape said. "You just kind of hope it won't stay this way, but it's going to be hard until everything comes back."
