Labor Market Pulse · Human Resources · October 2026
Human Resources Labor Market Report: Lima, OH MSA — October 2026
Lima's tight labor market masks a wage-growth stall.
Allen County unemployment sits near 3.0% against Ohio's 3.4%, yet Lima's average wage of $28.41 an hour trails the $33.54 national figure, and Recruiter pay has dropped significantly even as HR Coordinator pay climbs.
Free archive edition. Published by WageScape as sent to subscribers; data as of October 2026.
Key indicators
- Allen County unemployment: 3.0% — vs 3.4% Ohio statewide, Sept. 2026
- Lima MSA avg. hourly wage: $28.41 — vs $33.54 national average
- Lima nonfarm payroll growth: +100 jobs — June to July 2026, total 52,500
- Ohio WARN-affected workers: 7,207 — Down 47% from 2025 across 64 filings
Key takeaways
Recruiter pay is falling while HR Coordinator pay climbs sharply.
Metro Recruiter advertised pay dropped significantly to $54,080 against a stable national median of $67,234, while HR Coordinator pay rose significantly to $51,438 — nearly matching Recruiter pay. Employers appear to be scaling back external sourcing investment in favor of internal administrative and employee-support capacity, consistent with a low-hire, low-fire market.
Compensation Analyst pay is softening against a stable national trend.
Metro Compensation Analyst advertised pay moved down to $92,620 while the national median held stable at $100,798, a gap that may reflect reduced local demand for formal pay-structure expertise in a market where minimum wage and manufacturing wage floors dominate compensation conversations. Smaller or mid-market Lima employers may be deprioritizing dedicated comp analytics roles during a hiring slowdown.
Manufacturing layoffs are shrinking even as the sector still leads WARN activity.
Ohio manufacturing WARN notices accounted for 23 of 64 filings statewide and 3,159 of 7,207 affected workers in 2026, but total affected workers fell 47% from 2025 — a sign that the contraction is slowing. HR leaders in manufacturing-adjacent Lima employers should track whether released talent is entering the local applicant pool or leaving the metro entirely.
Low wages locally make benefits design a bigger lever than base pay.
Policy Matters Ohio's 2026 report flags low-wage jobs as dominant in Lima's occupational mix, with the top 10 occupations covering 10.5% of workers at incomes below the area's cost-of-living threshold. Where base pay can't close the gap to national medians, benefits and scheduling flexibility become the more credible retention and recruitment lever.
Median advertised pay by role — Lima, OH MSA
| Role | 25th percentile | Median advertised pay | 75th percentile | Metro trend | National median |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Compensation Analyst * | $66,763 | $92,620 | $103,316 | Moderate decline | $100,798 |
| HR Business Partner | $45,216 | $58,718 | $77,194 | Significant increase | $83,900 |
| Benefits Manager * | $88,474 | $112,622 | $118,031 | Stable | $118,618 |
| HRIS Analyst * | $74,542 | $85,739 | $101,627 | Stable | $95,000 |
| HR Coordinator | $29,071 | $51,438 | $54,029 | Significant increase | $50,460 |
| Recruiter | $40,040 | $54,080 | $74,777 | Significant decline | $67,234 |
| Payroll Specialist * | $47,840 | $55,257 | $62,400 | Moderate increase | $61,103 |
* 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
Local market conditions
Allen County's unemployment rate held near 3.0% through spring 2026, well below Ohio's 3.4% September reading, even as the Lima MSA added only 100 nonfarm payroll jobs between June and July — a signal that tight labor supply is driving the low unemployment figure. Manufacturing-driven WARN filings (FedEx, CAM Industrial Solutions) and a wage base running roughly 15% below the national average ($28.41 vs. $33.54 per hour) point to a metro where employers compete for a shrinking pool of workers without the pricing power to raise pay quickly.
What it means
Lima's combination of near-full employment and below-national wages creates a retention trap: workers have options locally but employers lack the margin to win bidding wars on pay alone, pushing the decision toward non-cash total rewards and internal mobility. Metro advertised pay data showing HR Coordinator (+significant) and HR Business Partner (+significant) climbing even as Recruiter and Compensation Analyst pay softens suggests employers are investing in roles that manage existing talent over roles that source new talent. Consider reviewing whether your recruiting function headcount matches actual hiring volume, or whether budget is better redirected toward retention-focused HR capacity.
Looking ahead
Early indicator: Watch whether job ad volume on OhioMeansJobs.com (1,909 postings within 20 miles of Lima as of late May) grows or contracts through year-end — a signal of hiring demand (one ad often covers several openings), with ad counts understating actual openings for hourly roles in particular.
Emerging pressure point: Ohio's labor force participation rate (61.2%) trails the national rate (61.8%) and appears to be declining further as the workforce ages. Lima employers dependent on production and food-service labor should model whether local labor supply contraction outpaces hiring need over the next two quarters.
Worth watching: Recent WARN filings at Pixelle Specialty Solutions and Packaging Corporation of America (61 and 91 workers respectively, early October) add to a pattern of scattered manufacturing-adjacent layoffs. Track whether released workers surface in the Lima applicant pool, offering a near-term hiring opportunity for employers in healthcare or logistics.
Potential inflection point: Ohio's minimum wage increase to $11/hour, now a full quarter into effect, continues compressing pay bands for roles just above the floor. Employers should revisit pay equity audits for workers within a few dollars of minimum wage before year-end budget cycles lock in 2027 ranges.
Sources
- LimaOhio.com / ODJFS — Allen County unemployment rate and Lima MSA payroll growth figures
- Bureau of Labor Statistics — Lima MSA average hourly wage vs. national average
- layoffdata.com — Ohio manufacturing WARN filings and year-over-year decline in affected workers
- Policy Matters Ohio — Low-wage job dominance in Lima MSA occupational mix
- Ohio Capital Journal / Policy Matters Ohio — Ohio labor force participation rate vs. national rate
- Ohio WARN Act filings — Recent Lima-area WARN filings at Pixelle and Packaging Corp
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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