Labor Market Pulse · Information Technology · September 2026
Information Technology Labor Market Report: HI NONMETROPOLITAN AREA — September 2026
Nonmetro Hawaii's wage floor is closing in on IT support pay.
Hawaii's minimum wage climbs to $16/hour en route to $18 by 2028, compressing the gap to Help Desk pay at $71,015 even as Cybersecurity Analyst pay jumps to $122,900 against a national median of $106,790.
Free archive edition. Published by WageScape as sent to subscribers; data as of September 2026.
Key indicators
- Hawaii statewide unemployment: 2.5% — Down from 2.7% in August 2026
- State minimum wage: $16.00/hr — Rising to $18.00/hr in January 2028
- Hawaii County avg weekly wage: $1,190 — Lowest among HI counties vs $1,250 Maui
- Cybersecurity Analyst advertised pay: $122,900 — Up significantly, vs $106,790 national median
Key takeaways
Minimum wage ramp is quietly eating support-tier differentials.
Help Desk advertised pay sits at $71,015 locally, well above the $16/hour floor, but each step toward $18/hour in 2028 narrows the gap to Systems Administrator pay ($97,519, up moderately). Leaders planning multi-year support budgets should model compression now rather than reacting at each wage step.
Cybersecurity is the one role pulling away from the pack.
Metro Cybersecurity Analyst pay rose significantly to $122,900, outpacing the national median of $106,790 — unusual for a nonmetro market that typically trails mainland rates. That reversal is consistent with scarcity-driven bidding for scarce security talent rather than a broad-based nonmetro pay rally.
Software Engineer and Project Manager pay are both pulling back sharply.
Software Engineer advertised pay fell significantly to $121,489 against a stable national median of $153,652, and IT Project Manager pay dropped significantly to $78,687 while the national figure rose. Divergence this wide may suggest local demand for these roles is softening or shifting toward contract/remote arrangements rather than direct local hire.
Hawaii County's job base looks flat to shrinking, not just slow.
County forecasts point to a net 2026 job decline driven by tourism-linked softness, even as statewide unemployment stays near historic lows. Tight labor supply alongside falling job counts is a replacement-market signature — automation and cloud-first strategies may do more to close gaps than new local headcount.
Median advertised pay by role — HI NONMETROPOLITAN AREA
| Role | 25th percentile | Median advertised pay | 75th percentile | Metro trend | National median |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Data Scientist | $110,311 | $126,800 | $132,960 | Stable | $148,250 |
| Systems Administrator | $75,916 | $97,519 | $105,000 | Moderate increase | $101,168 |
| Network Engineer | $94,010 | $121,569 | $128,325 | Moderate increase | $114,400 |
| Software Engineer | $87,291 | $121,489 | $130,306 | Significant decline | $153,652 |
| Help Desk/IT Support Specialist | $50,517 | $71,015 | $79,997 | Stable | $53,644 |
| Cybersecurity Analyst | $98,317 | $122,900 | $123,000 | Significant increase | $106,790 |
| IT Project Manager | $74,614 | $78,687 | $94,903 | Significant decline | $117,530 |
WageScape's median is calibrated to correct for spurious low-value postings (reported as the 60th percentile of raw advertised pay). Download: CSV · JSON
Local market conditions
Hawaii's nonmetro labor market remains defined by scarcity rather than slack: the statewide rate eased to 2.5% in September from 2.7% in August, yet Hawaii County continues to post the lowest average weekly wage in the state at $1,190 and is tracking toward a net job decline for 2026 as tourism-linked softness persists. The state's steepest-in-the-nation minimum wage ramp, now $16/hour and set for $18 in 2028, is compressing entry-tier wage bands even as overall job counts stay stuck near 2016 levels amid chronic worker scarcity.
What it means
Compression at the wage floor is squeezing differentials between help desk, support, and administrator tiers, making it harder to justify traditional step pay structures without retuning the full ladder. Structural labor scarcity, combined with large on-island/remote pay gaps — Hawaiian Electric's $111K–$157K local tech bands versus $400K+ mainland remote packages — pushes build-vs-buy decisions toward distributed hiring and outsourced commodity support rather than local headcount expansion. Consider reviewing whether support and administrator pay bands still preserve meaningful separation from the $16 floor, and whether hybrid/remote sourcing could relieve pressure on roles facing the deepest local scarcity.
Looking ahead
Expected: Second minimum wage step toward $18/hour lands in January 2028, but budget cycles for 2027 should already reflect the compounding compression on support and admin tiers. Review whether current pay ladders still hold together two steps out.
Emerging pressure point: Hawaii County's forecasted net job decline for 2026, concentrated in tourism-linked sectors, could loosen the broader candidate pool even as the statewide rate stays near 2.5%. Watch whether displaced workers show any crossover into IT support or admin applicant pools.
Worth watching: Cybersecurity's significant local pay gain against a national median still rising moderately suggests the premium for security talent in constrained island labor markets is not yet topping out. Expect continued upward pressure on advertised rates through year-end.
Potential inflection point: Software Engineer and IT Project Manager pay are both down significantly while national rates hold or climb — a divergence worth tracking for whether it reflects genuine demand softening or simply a shift toward remote/mainland hiring for these functions.
Methodology
Advertised pay from active employer job postings, not survey data. WageScape's median is calibrated to correct for spurious low-value postings: distribution analysis shows roughly the lowest 10% of raw values are erroneous entries, so the reported median is the 60th percentile of raw advertised pay. WageScape observes 98% of U.S. job openings daily.
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