Labor Market Pulse · Human Resources · October 2026
Human Resources Labor Market Report: Logan, UT-ID MSA — October 2026
Logan's tight labor market meets a persistent pay gap.
Cache County unemployment held at 3.2% in July while Logan's $28.31 average hourly wage trailed the national $33.54 rate by nearly 16%, forcing employers to compete on factors beyond base pay.
Free archive edition. Published by WageScape as sent to subscribers; data as of October 2026.
Key indicators
- Cache County unemployment: 3.2% — vs. 3.5% Utah, 4.1% national
- Logan avg. hourly wage: $28.31 — vs. $33.54 national average
- Logan civilian labor force: ~83,400 — ~81,000 employed, near full employment
- Utah statewide unemployment: 3.5% — up from 3.3% in Jan 2025
Key takeaways
Logan's wage gap to national rates is widening in HR roles.
Recruiter pay sits at $42,778 locally versus $67,234 nationally, and HR Coordinator at $39,104 versus $50,460 — gaps exceeding 20-30% that make remote and Wasatch Front competition for entry-level HR talent increasingly difficult to win on pay alone.
HR Business Partner pay is moving in opposite directions locally and nationally.
Metro HRBP pay is down moderately to $60,180 while national pay is up moderately to $83,900, a divergence that may reflect Logan employers restructuring HR generalist roles or absorbing responsibilities into adjacent functions as they deprioritize direct competition for standalone HRBP talent.
HRIS Analyst demand looks like the metro's clearest compensation signal this month.
Advertised pay rose moderately to $97,578, now exceeding the stable national median of $95,000 — a sign that Logan employers are actively bidding for systems and data expertise even as softer HR-support roles see pay erode.
Tight local labor supply is colliding with below-average advertised wages.
A 3.2% county unemployment rate signals minimal slack, yet the metro's $28.31 average hourly wage lags the national figure by nearly $5.25 an hour — a mismatch that typically precedes either accelerated local wage catch-up or sustained vacancy duration.
Median advertised pay by role — Logan, UT-ID MSA
| Role | 25th percentile | Median advertised pay | 75th percentile | Metro trend | National median |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Compensation Analyst * | $74,182 | $101,976 | $116,644 | Stable | $100,798 |
| HR Business Partner | $38,587 | $60,180 | $93,509 | Moderate decline | $83,900 |
| Benefits Manager * | $78,000 | $116,048 | $127,489 | Stable | $118,618 |
| HRIS Analyst * | $81,000 | $97,578 | $105,408 | Moderate increase | $95,000 |
| HR Coordinator | $35,537 | $39,104 | $41,600 | Significant decline | $50,460 |
| Recruiter | $33,280 | $42,778 | $50,424 | Significant decline | $67,234 |
| Payroll Specialist | $46,440 | $51,750 | $51,889 | 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
Cache County unemployment held at a tight 3.2% in July, well below the state's 3.5% and national 4.1%, while the metro's civilian labor force of roughly 83,400 continues to run near full employment. Advertised pay in Logan remains structurally compressed relative to national rates — the metro's $28.31 average hourly wage trails the U.S. average of $33.54 by nearly 16% — a gap that is forcing HR teams to compete on factors beyond base pay as local labor supply stays scarce.
What it means
Sub-4% unemployment paired with a persistent wage gap to national rates means Logan employers cannot rely on pay alone to close talent gaps against remote or multi-market competitors, particularly for roles like HR Business Partner and Recruiter where advertised pay sits 28-36% below national medians. Retention economics favor developing internal talent given how thin the local candidate pool runs, and the compression in HR-support roles specifically may signal employers shifting headcount toward higher-value HRIS and compensation functions. Consider reviewing total rewards packages for roles exposed to this metro-to-national pay gap, with particular attention to whether non-cash benefits can offset the differential.
Looking ahead
Compliance deadline: Utah's November 1 deadline for hospital anti-retaliation policies lands directly on Logan Regional Hospital and other health system employers; HR teams should confirm policy documentation and manager training are complete before the deadline.
Emerging pressure point: Healthcare non-compete restrictions in effect since May mean Logan's hospital and clinic employers have fewer retention levers for clinical staff, raising the stakes on compensation and scheduling flexibility as retention tools.
Worth watching: Statewide information-sector job losses (-1,700) have not yet shown up distinctly in Logan MSA data; watch whether displaced tech and IT talent begins appearing in the local candidate pool given Northrop Grumman's footprint in the metro.
Early indicator: Construction wage growth is projected to exceed 5% statewide; Logan employers competing for skilled trades against Wasatch Front projects should monitor whether local advertised rates begin tracking that trajectory.
Sources
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Cache County unemployment at 3.2% in July 2026
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Logan MSA average hourly wage of $28.31 in May 2025
- Utah Department of Workforce Services — Utah statewide unemployment rate of 3.5%
- Utah State Legislature — Utah hospital anti-retaliation policy deadline of November 1, 2026
- Utah State Legislature — Healthcare non-compete restrictions in effect since May 6, 2026
- Utah Department of Workforce Services — Logan MSA civilian labor force of approximately 83,400
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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