Metro Job Market Pulse · General Market Conditions · October 2026
General Market Conditions Labor Market Report: Kokomo, IN MSA — October 2026
Kokomo's factory buildout meets a softening local jobless rate.
Kokomo MSA unemployment near 5.1% sits well above Indiana's 3.4% statewide rate even as two announced factory projects promise roughly 2,800 new jobs, an 8% addition to current metro employment.
Free archive edition. Published by WageScape as sent to subscribers; data as of October 2026.
Key indicators
- Kokomo MSA unemployment: 5.1% — vs Indiana's 3.4% statewide rate, Sept 2026
- Announced manufacturing jobs: ~2,800 — Nearly 8% of current Kokomo MSA employment
- Indiana labor force participation: 63.1% — vs 61.8% national rate
- National real wage growth: -0.11% — Nominal wages +3.6% vs inflation, Sept 2025-26
Key takeaways
Manufacturing capacity is expanding faster than the labor pool is confirmed to absorb it.
Two announced factory projects would add jobs equal to nearly 8% of current metro employment, arriving as the metro's unemployment rate has ticked up toward 5.1%. Commerce leaders should treat the announced job count as a demand signal to monitor until local employment gains are confirmed.
Kokomo's jobless rate is drifting away from Indiana's.
Statewide unemployment sits at 3.4% with labor force participation at 63.1%, well above the national 61.8%, while Kokomo's most recent readings run closer to 5%. That gap is worth tracking as a local-versus-state divergence, since the metro is not simply mirroring Indiana's relative strength.
White-collar pay softness contrasts with factory-floor firmness.
Administrative Assistant pay is down moderately and HR Generalist pay down significantly in the metro even as Manufacturing Production Worker and Electrician pay hold stable-to-up. That split is consistent with an economy where industrial expansion is the active growth engine while office-based employment lags.
Real wages are eroding locally in line with the national pattern.
National median weekly earnings rose 1.5% against 3.5% CPI growth in Q3, and Kokomo's own advertised pay data shows several roles flat or declining in nominal terms — Delivery Driver and Construction Laborer pay both down significantly. Consumer spending power in the metro is likely under similar pressure, a relevant input for any local retail or services investment case.
Median advertised pay by role — Kokomo, IN MSA
| Role | 25th percentile | Median advertised pay | 75th percentile | Metro trend | National median |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail Sales Associate | $21,994 | $26,750 | $31,200 | Stable | $33,340 |
| Retail Cashier | $24,414 | $26,399 | $30,670 | Stable | $31,268 |
| Warehouse/Fulfillment Associate | $30,662 | $37,084 | $37,440 | Moderate increase | $38,480 |
| CDL Truck Driver | $58,480 | $78,000 | $90,870 | Stable | $78,872 |
| Delivery Driver | $27,351 | $31,087 | $39,000 | Significant decline | $34,826 |
| Construction Laborer | $34,320 | $40,352 | $47,840 | Significant decline | $40,727 |
| Electrician | $57,678 | $81,806 | $83,200 | Moderate increase | $71,835 |
| Manufacturing Production Worker/Assembler | $34,408 | $40,613 | $42,849 | Stable | $39,520 |
| Customer Service Representative | $32,288 | $34,320 | $35,360 | Stable | $39,520 |
| Food Service Worker | $30,160 | $33,280 | $36,774 | Significant increase | $33,764 |
| Certified Nursing Assistant / Home Health Aide | $32,240 | $34,320 | $36,400 | Stable | $41,600 |
| Administrative Assistant/Office Clerk | $33,311 | $38,376 | $41,902 | Moderate decline | $44,552 |
| HVAC Technician * | $58,889 | $72,800 | $78,000 | Moderate increase | $71,406 |
| Registered Nurse | $79,479 | $91,647 | $99,872 | Stable | $102,252 |
| Software Engineer * | $103,089 | $142,699 | $158,664 | Significant increase | $154,403 |
| Data Engineer * | $94,031 | $128,500 | $143,256 | Moderate increase | $138,000 |
| Accountant * | $55,129 | $66,925 | $74,026 | Stable | $72,000 |
| Financial Analyst * | $67,600 | $84,133 | $92,976 | Stable | $94,646 |
| HR Generalist/Manager | $48,277 | $52,233 | $60,069 | Significant decline | $74,477 |
| Marketing Specialist * | $46,090 | $57,438 | $65,633 | Stable | $62,916 |
| Operations Manager * | $77,596 | $83,253 | $92,092 | Moderate increase | $86,294 |
| Elementary/Secondary School Teacher | $28,340 | $47,000 | $55,911 | Stable | $55,908 |
| Account Manager | $33,084 | $61,934 | $73,764 | Moderate decline | $94,009 |
| Warehouse Manager * | $64,250 | $67,500 | $83,285 | Significant decline | $75,000 |
| Business Analyst * | $75,506 | $96,464 | $106,217 | Stable | $98,302 |
* State-level figure shown where metro postings were too few.
WageScape's median is calibrated to correct for spurious low-value postings (reported as the 60th percentile of raw advertised pay). Download: CSV · JSON
Industry snapshot
| Sector | Median advertised pay | Pay trend | Postings trend |
|---|---|---|---|
| Construction | $82,426 | Significant increase | Significant increase |
| Manufacturing | $47,883 | Moderate increase | Significant increase |
| Retail Trade | $40,189 | Significant increase | Significant increase |
| Transportation, Warehousing & Utilities | $75,140 | Significant increase | Significant increase |
| Information | $57,502 | Significant increase | Significant increase |
| Financial Activities | $50,000 | Stable | Significant increase |
| Professional & Business Services | $52,929 | Significant increase | Significant increase |
| Education & Health Services | $59,184 | Significant increase | Significant increase |
| Leisure & Hospitality | $29,900 | Moderate decline | Significant increase |
| Government | $66,072 | Stable | Significant increase |
Local market conditions
Kokomo MSA unemployment held near 4.7% through much of 2026 before edging toward a June reading of 5.1%, with gains concentrated in construction, healthcare, and manufacturing — a sharper divergence from the state's 3.4% rate than earlier in the year. Two announced factory projects totaling roughly 2,800 jobs, nearly 8% of current metro employment, represent a structural capacity expansion layered onto an already manufacturing-heavy base, even as Indiana's statewide labor force has contracted for seven straight months on a year-over-year basis.
What it means
Metro manufacturing wages (Production Worker/Assembler at $40,613, stable) sit above national medians while warehouse pay is rising moderately, suggesting the local economy is absorbing new industrial capacity without the wage spikes that would signal acute labor scarcity. Commerce leaders evaluating expansion or site-location decisions should weigh Kokomo's above-national manufacturing wage floor against softer signals in office and professional roles — Administrative Assistant pay is down moderately and HR Generalist pay down significantly, pointing to slack in white-collar segments even as factory-floor demand firms. Consider reviewing how the pending factory ramp-ups interact with local labor force participation data over the next two quarters before treating the 2,800-job pipeline as a settled certainty.
Looking ahead
Expected: November and December BLS releases should clarify whether the uptick in Kokomo's unemployment rate toward 5.1% is a one-month blip or the start of a trend, particularly as the two announced factory projects move from construction toward staffing phases.
Emerging pressure point: Indiana's statewide labor force has now shrunk for multiple consecutive months even as participation remains above the national rate — worth watching whether Kokomo's local labor supply can support the 2,800-job manufacturing pipeline without drawing workers from neighboring counties or other sectors.
Worth watching: Job ads, a signal of hiring demand (one ad often covers several openings), for warehouse and fulfillment roles are rising moderately in the metro even as delivery driver pay falls sharply, a combination that may reflect shifting logistics demand patterns tied to the broader manufacturing buildout.
Potential inflection point: National wage data due in coming weeks, alongside Indiana's pending Consumer Price Index release, will help clarify whether the real-wage gap evident in national and metro advertised-pay figures is narrowing or widening heading into year-end — a direct input for assessing local consumer spending capacity.
Sources
- Bureau of Labor Statistics — Kokomo MSA unemployment rate at 5.1% in June 2026
- Indiana Department of Workforce Development — Indiana unemployment rate at 3.4% in September 2026
- Indiana University Kokomo economic forecast — Two factories expected to create 2,800 new jobs in Kokomo MSA
- Bureau of Labor Statistics / Indiana DWD — Indiana labor force participation at 63.1% vs national 61.8%
- Bureau of Labor Statistics — National median weekly earnings rose 1.5% vs 3.5% CPI gain in Q3 2026
- Indiana Department of Workforce Development — Indiana labor force shrank for seven consecutive months year-over-year
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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