Metro Job Market Pulse · General Market Conditions · September 2026
General Market Conditions Labor Market Report: Pascagoula, MS MSA — September 2026
Shipbuilding anchors Pascagoula as statewide labor pool shrinks.
Jackson County unemployment near 3.5% looks strong against the 4.1% national rate, but Mississippi's roughly 54% labor force participation — eight points below the 61.8% U.S. average — means the metro's tight numbers reflect a shrinking workforce as much as added momentum.
Free archive edition. Published by WageScape as sent to subscribers; data as of September 2026.
Key indicators
- Jackson County unemployment: 3.5% — vs 4.1% national, July 2026
- MS labor force participation: ~54-55% — vs 61.8% national rate
- Manufacturing share of county GDP: 52.4% — vs 14.8% statewide
- Mississippi nonfarm employment: 1,199,800 jobs — Record high, August 2026
Key takeaways
Low jobless rate masks a shrinking labor pool.
Jackson County's sub-4% unemployment looks strong against the 4.1% national rate, but Mississippi's labor force participation near 54-55% — roughly eight points below the national average — means fewer working-age residents are available to absorb new business activity without wage competition.
Manufacturing concentration cuts both ways for stability.
Manufacturing drives 52.4% of county GDP, more than triple the state share, giving the metro outsized exposure to shipbuilding contract cycles and energy-sector capital spending. A single major contract shift at Ingalls or Chevron would ripple through the local economy more than it would in a diversified metro.
Wage gains in skilled trades outpace the broader basket.
Electricians (up significantly to $69,629) and HVAC technicians (up moderately to $59,378) are seeing advertised pay climb faster than retail, warehouse, and construction labor roles, consistent with sustained demand tied to the metro's industrial and shipbuilding infrastructure base.
Soft retail and logistics pay may signal consumer caution.
Retail sales associate, delivery driver, and construction laborer advertised pay all moved down this month, a pattern that may suggest softer discretionary spending locally even as skilled industrial trades tighten — a divergence worth tracking for overall consumer demand signals.
Median advertised pay by role — Pascagoula, MS MSA
| Role | 25th percentile | Median advertised pay | 75th percentile | Metro trend | National median |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail Sales Associate | $19,870 | $24,472 | $26,520 | Moderate decline | $33,325 |
| Retail Cashier | $22,536 | $24,556 | $25,399 | Stable | $31,200 |
| Warehouse/Fulfillment Associate | $27,931 | $31,485 | $39,827 | Moderate decline | $38,000 |
| CDL Truck Driver | $49,092 | $70,000 | $76,639 | Moderate increase | $78,000 |
| Delivery Driver | $25,834 | $30,011 | $30,713 | Significant decline | $34,344 |
| Construction Laborer | $24,272 | $25,139 | $29,120 | Significant decline | $40,560 |
| Electrician | $57,200 | $69,629 | $81,384 | Significant increase | $71,404 |
| Manufacturing Production Worker/Assembler * | $29,893 | $32,335 | $34,625 | Moderate decline | $39,520 |
| Customer Service Representative | $33,127 | $36,385 | $38,186 | Significant increase | $39,520 |
| Food Service Worker | $24,837 | $26,282 | $26,516 | Stable | $33,756 |
| Certified Nursing Assistant / Home Health Aide | $25,332 | $29,200 | $31,616 | Moderate increase | $41,106 |
| Administrative Assistant/Office Clerk | $28,883 | $35,815 | $36,934 | Moderate increase | $43,680 |
| HVAC Technician | $55,717 | $59,378 | $61,753 | Moderate increase | $70,720 |
| Registered Nurse | $64,521 | $76,947 | $82,515 | Significant increase | $102,581 |
| Software Engineer * | $107,278 | $152,955 | $164,803 | Significant increase | $153,652 |
| Data Engineer * | $85,044 | $118,965 | $134,766 | Moderate decline | $139,500 |
| Accountant | $52,120 | $62,945 | $65,331 | Significant increase | $72,182 |
| Financial Analyst | $61,700 | $69,990 | $73,654 | Significant increase | $94,782 |
| HR Generalist/Manager * | $41,123 | $55,000 | $67,500 | Moderate increase | $75,000 |
| Marketing Specialist * | $40,901 | $56,684 | $75,516 | Significant increase | $62,354 |
| Operations Manager * | $68,896 | $68,896 | $68,896 | Stable | $85,216 |
| Elementary/Secondary School Teacher | $23,936 | $49,066 | $60,385 | Stable | $56,731 |
| Account Manager | $65,000 | $80,000 | $90,000 | Moderate increase | $92,749 |
| Warehouse Manager * | $65,413 | $65,413 | $65,413 | Significant decline | $75,000 |
| Business Analyst * | $65,022 | $77,804 | $87,103 | Moderate decline | $98,279 |
* 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 | $70,360 | Significant decline | Significant increase |
| Manufacturing | $72,397 | Significant increase | Significant increase |
| Retail Trade | $31,685 | Stable | Significant increase |
| Transportation, Warehousing & Utilities | $56,246 | Moderate increase | Significant increase |
| Information | $80,150 | Significant decline | Significant increase |
| Financial Activities | $42,031 | Moderate increase | Significant increase |
| Professional & Business Services | $37,567 | Moderate increase | Significant increase |
| Education & Health Services | $58,260 | Significant increase | Significant increase |
| Leisure & Hospitality | $30,118 | Significant decline | Significant increase |
| Government | $65,353 | Significant increase | Significant increase |
Local market conditions
Jackson County's unemployment rate held near 3.5% in July, well below the 4.1% national rate, as shipbuilding and energy-related manufacturing — Ingalls Shipbuilding and Chevron chief among them — continue to anchor a local economy where manufacturing accounts for 52.4% of GDP versus 14.8% statewide. Mississippi's labor force participation rate of roughly 54-55%, far below the 61.8% national figure, suggests the metro's tight jobless numbers reflect a shrinking labor pool as much as genuine economic acceleration.
What it means
Low unemployment paired with a thin labor force means local business expansion plans should account for a tighter available labor pool than the headline jobless rate implies, particularly for shipbuilding-adjacent and skilled trades work that underpins the metro's manufacturing base. Commerce leaders evaluating site selection or expansion incentives should weigh labor force participation trends as heavily as unemployment data, since the latter alone overstates local labor market slack. Consider reviewing regional workforce participation programs and in-migration data before assuming current conditions can absorb a significant new employer without wage pressure.
Looking ahead
Worth watching: Mississippi's September unemployment rate of 3.7% reversed part of August's drop to 3.4%, the lowest since September 2024. Watch whether October data confirm a genuine cooling or a one-month statistical blip tied to the record 1,199,800 statewide nonfarm employment figure.
Emerging pressure point: National WARN filings this year have run below 2025 levels, but manufacturing remains the single largest category of Mississippi notices (8 of 12 filings, 596 workers). Any contract disruption affecting Gulf Coast shipbuilding or energy capital projects would be the metro-specific signal to track first.
Early indicator: National wage growth has slowed to 3.0% annually against 3.4% inflation, eroding real purchasing power for the first time in two years. Local wage-vs-CPI tracking over the next two months will clarify whether Pascagoula's skilled-trade wage gains are enough to offset this broader erosion for area consumers.
Potential inflection point: Governor Reeves' Hitachi Energy investment announcement signals continued state-level interest in energy and manufacturing capacity. Commerce leaders should watch for any site-selection or supplier-network spillover into the Jackson County industrial base over the next quarter.
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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