Metro Job Market Pulse · General Market Conditions · October 2026
General Market Conditions Labor Market Report: Pine Bluff, AR MSA — October 2026
Pine Bluff wages still trail state average by 17 percent.
Jefferson County's $1,067 average weekly wage remains well below Arkansas's $1,291 statewide figure even as the state posted record employment and a 3.9 percent unemployment rate in September.
Free archive edition. Published by WageScape as sent to subscribers; data as of October 2026.
Key indicators
- Jefferson County avg. weekly wage: $1,067 — vs $1,291 statewide, a 17% gap
- Arkansas unemployment rate: 3.9% — Sept. 2026, vs 4.2% national rate
- Arkansas labor force participation: 59.1% — Up 0.2 pts year-over-year
- Arkansas nonfarm payroll growth: +12,500 jobs — Sept. 2026, record 1,354,400 total
Key takeaways
Pine Bluff's wage gap with Arkansas persists at roughly 17 percent.
Jefferson County's $1,067 average weekly wage trails the statewide $1,291 figure, a gap that predates this month's data and shows no clear sign of narrowing. Commerce leaders citing statewide record employment should pair that fact with the local wage differential to avoid overstating metro-level momentum.
Healthcare and construction advertised pay point to real local activity.
Registered nurse pay locally rose to $97,012 and construction laborer pay to $35,360, both trending up, consistent with reported hospital and university construction projects and Arsenal maintenance work. These figures are a more current proxy for local demand than the county's stale Q1 jobs data.
State-level gains are concentrated in sectors Pine Bluff is positioned to share.
Arkansas added jobs mainly in government (+10,500) and private education/health services (+3,600), both sectors anchored locally by the Arsenal, UAPB and Jefferson Regional. Whether Pine Bluff captured a proportional share of that growth cannot be confirmed until county-level September data is released.
Data lag is itself a decision-relevant constraint for local officials.
Jefferson County's most recent covered-employment figures date to Q1, and WARN notices are not disclosed under Arkansas law, leaving commerce leaders without a current read on local layoff activity or job growth. Economic development pitches built on statewide figures should flag this gap clearly to avoid implying county-level confirmation.
Median advertised pay by role — Pine Bluff, AR MSA
| Role | 25th percentile | Median advertised pay | 75th percentile | Metro trend | National median |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail Sales Associate | $21,901 | $25,591 | $28,040 | Moderate decline | $33,340 |
| Retail Cashier | $24,246 | $25,418 | $26,281 | Moderate decline | $31,268 |
| Warehouse/Fulfillment Associate | $29,912 | $35,249 | $43,680 | Moderate increase | $38,480 |
| CDL Truck Driver | $60,286 | $82,429 | $95,375 | Stable | $78,872 |
| Delivery Driver | $25,912 | $29,306 | $29,937 | Stable | $34,826 |
| Construction Laborer * | $30,466 | $35,360 | $37,440 | Moderate increase | $40,727 |
| Electrician | $54,500 | $66,898 | $70,484 | Stable | $71,835 |
| Manufacturing Production Worker/Assembler * | $30,160 | $34,890 | $39,421 | Moderate decline | $39,520 |
| Customer Service Representative | $28,176 | $35,360 | $43,695 | Stable | $39,520 |
| Food Service Worker | $25,301 | $27,040 | $27,285 | Stable | $33,764 |
| Certified Nursing Assistant / Home Health Aide | $31,200 | $33,097 | $40,413 | Moderate increase | $41,600 |
| Administrative Assistant/Office Clerk | $31,170 | $39,520 | $42,640 | Moderate increase | $44,552 |
| HVAC Technician | $53,336 | $89,960 | $89,960 | Stable | $71,406 |
| Registered Nurse | $82,406 | $97,012 | $102,241 | Moderate increase | $102,252 |
| Software Engineer * | $117,528 | $150,617 | $165,000 | Stable | $154,403 |
| Data Engineer * | $91,487 | $125,778 | $138,330 | Stable | $138,000 |
| Accountant * | $54,579 | $65,129 | $74,537 | Moderate increase | $72,000 |
| Financial Analyst * | $72,671 | $88,941 | $99,819 | Stable | $94,646 |
| HR Generalist/Manager | $37,946 | $63,927 | $74,084 | Moderate increase | $74,477 |
| Marketing Specialist * | $44,697 | $61,187 | $75,104 | Significant increase | $62,916 |
| Operations Manager * | $60,059 | $76,001 | $95,000 | Significant increase | $86,294 |
| Elementary/Secondary School Teacher | $45,323 | $55,368 | $59,225 | Significant increase | $55,908 |
| Account Manager | $89,602 | $110,550 | $114,413 | Significant increase | $94,009 |
| Warehouse Manager * | $46,548 | $60,781 | $70,032 | Significant increase | $75,000 |
| Business Analyst * | $75,854 | $92,896 | $103,891 | 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 | $63,066 | Stable | Significant increase |
| Manufacturing | $48,991 | Significant increase | Significant increase |
| Retail Trade | $33,443 | Moderate increase | Significant increase |
| Transportation, Warehousing & Utilities | $68,075 | Moderate decline | Significant increase |
| Information | $186,300 | Significant increase | Significant increase |
| Financial Activities | $54,751 | Significant decline | Significant increase |
| Professional & Business Services | $62,712 | Significant increase | Significant increase |
| Education & Health Services | $45,928 | Significant decline | Significant increase |
| Leisure & Hospitality | $29,306 | Moderate increase | Significant increase |
| Government | $63,904 | Moderate increase | Significant increase |
Local market conditions
Jefferson County's most recent wage data shows an average weekly wage of $1,067, roughly 17 percent below the statewide average of $1,291, even as Arkansas overall posted record employment and a 3.9 percent unemployment rate in September. State-level gains concentrated in government (+10,500 jobs) and private education and health services (+3,600), sectors well represented locally through the Pine Bluff Arsenal and Jefferson Regional Medical Center, but county-specific figures for the gains seen statewide this fall remain unavailable.
What it means
Record state employment and a below-national unemployment rate signal a labor market with little slack statewide, but Jefferson County's persistent wage gap suggests Pine Bluff's economy is lagging that momentum, a distinction that matters for how commerce leaders pitch the metro to prospective investment or relocation. Advertised pay gains in warehouse/fulfillment ($35,249, up), construction labor ($35,360, up) and nursing ($97,012, up) point to pockets of local strength tied to healthcare, logistics and construction activity around the Port of Pine Bluff and area hospitals. Current conditions suggest commerce and development officials track whether county-level employment data, once available, confirms participation in the statewide recovery or shows Pine Bluff lagging on a standalone basis.
Looking ahead
Data release to watch: Jefferson County's Q2/Q3 covered-employment and wage figures have not yet posted; their release will be the first real test of whether Pine Bluff is sharing in Arkansas's record statewide employment and labor force growth.
Worth watching: Registered nurse and construction laborer advertised pay are both trending up locally, consistent with ongoing hospital and campus construction. Sustained increases over the next two months would support a reading of durable local construction and healthcare demand tied to ongoing projects.
Early indicator: Warehouse/fulfillment advertised pay, measured by job ads (a signal of hiring demand, with one ad often covering several openings), rose to $35,249 locally against a flat national trend, a divergence worth tracking given the Port of Pine Bluff's logistics role. A continued local premium may reflect tightening logistics-sector demand distinct from the national pattern.
Structural factor: Federal labor force data show immigration-related curbs and retirements slowing national labor force growth; Arkansas's own participation rate rose only two-tenths of a point over the year. Commerce leaders should watch whether Jefferson County's workforce, smaller and older on average, faces a sharper version of this constraint.
Sources
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics via Delta Plex News — Jefferson County avg weekly wage $1,067 vs statewide $1,291
- Arkansas Department of Commerce / BLS — Arkansas nonfarm payrolls added 12,500 jobs in September, record high
- Arkansas Department of Commerce / BLS — Arkansas unemployment held at 3.9% in September, record employment
- Arkansas Department of Commerce / BLS — Arkansas labor force participation rate 59.1%, up 0.2 pts year-over-year
- Bureau of Labor Statistics — National labor force growth slowed by immigration curbs and retirements
- Arkansas Code Annotated § 11-10-314 — Arkansas WARN notices not publicly disclosed under state law
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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