Metro Job Market Pulse · General Market Conditions · October 2026
General Market Conditions Labor Market Report: Sandusky, OH MSA — October 2026
Sandusky metro's two counties are telling different labor stories.
Erie County's unemployment held at 3.6% while Sandusky County ran at 4.3%, and local HVAC and administrative pay rose significantly even as food service wages fell against a stable national trend.
Free archive edition. Published by WageScape as sent to subscribers; data as of October 2026.
Key indicators
- Erie County unemployment: 3.6% — vs Sandusky County's 4.3%, Aug 2026
- Ohio labor force participation: 61.2% — vs 61.8% national rate
- Metro food service pay: $28,025 — down significantly vs $33,764 national, stable
- Sandusky MSA civilian labor force: 61.3 thousand — July 2026, provisional BLS figure
Key takeaways
Two-county split masks a more complicated labor picture.
Erie County's 3.6% unemployment rate sits well below Sandusky County's 4.3%, a gap wide enough to suggest the MSA's labor conditions are not uniform across its own borders. Commerce leaders evaluating site location or expansion within the metro should treat county-level data as more informative than the blended MSA figure.
Significant local pay gains cluster in skilled trades and office roles.
HVAC technician pay rose significantly to $74,880 and administrative assistant pay rose significantly to $45,760 locally, both outpacing their national counterparts in direction and magnitude. That pattern is consistent with demand concentrated in skilled and administrative functions.
Food service wage decline stands out against a stable national trend.
Metro food service pay fell significantly to $28,025 while the national median held stable near $33,764, a divergence that may reflect softer local consumer-facing demand or a lakefront tourism season that didn't translate into sustained wage pressure. This bears watching as an early read on local consumer spending capacity heading into winter.
State-level labor force contraction forms the backdrop to this month's data.
Ohio's labor force participation has declined since June 2025 and fell again in September, a structural trend tied to aging demographics that predates this month's data. Sandusky MSA, already facing projected population loss of 15-22% over three decades, sits at the sharper end of that statewide trend.
Median advertised pay by role — Sandusky, OH MSA
| Role | 25th percentile | Median advertised pay | 75th percentile | Metro trend | National median |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail Sales Associate | $24,164 | $29,199 | $32,760 | Stable | $33,340 |
| Retail Cashier | $25,033 | $29,120 | $31,200 | Stable | $31,268 |
| Warehouse/Fulfillment Associate | $29,120 | $33,515 | $39,520 | Stable | $38,480 |
| CDL Truck Driver | $60,833 | $86,450 | $95,908 | Stable | $78,872 |
| Delivery Driver | $28,043 | $33,502 | $36,400 | Moderate increase | $34,826 |
| Construction Laborer | $33,280 | $39,819 | $49,400 | Moderate increase | $40,727 |
| Electrician | $71,329 | $76,067 | $80,690 | Moderate increase | $71,835 |
| Manufacturing Production Worker/Assembler | $33,976 | $40,040 | $41,600 | Moderate increase | $39,520 |
| Customer Service Representative | $32,275 | $37,049 | $42,495 | Stable | $39,520 |
| Food Service Worker | $28,025 | $28,025 | $28,025 | Significant decline | $33,764 |
| Certified Nursing Assistant / Home Health Aide | $34,837 | $39,541 | $44,096 | Stable | $41,600 |
| Administrative Assistant/Office Clerk | $37,722 | $45,760 | $46,800 | Significant increase | $44,552 |
| HVAC Technician | $57,500 | $74,880 | $74,880 | Significant increase | $71,406 |
| Registered Nurse | $75,547 | $85,696 | $92,560 | Moderate increase | $102,252 |
| Software Engineer * | $109,020 | $148,707 | $163,905 | Stable | $154,403 |
| Data Engineer * | $97,990 | $130,000 | $147,773 | Stable | $138,000 |
| Accountant | $49,730 | $70,087 | $72,500 | Stable | $72,000 |
| Financial Analyst * | $70,743 | $88,390 | $97,940 | Stable | $94,646 |
| HR Generalist/Manager * | $51,725 | $65,734 | $76,519 | Moderate increase | $74,477 |
| Marketing Specialist * | $47,328 | $59,245 | $68,739 | Moderate increase | $62,916 |
| Operations Manager * | $71,747 | $82,821 | $93,502 | Moderate increase | $86,294 |
| Elementary/Secondary School Teacher | $31,076 | $43,250 | $46,395 | Stable | $55,908 |
| Account Manager | $35,181 | $69,644 | $76,964 | Significant increase | $94,009 |
| Warehouse Manager * | $51,862 | $65,000 | $67,500 | Moderate decline | $75,000 |
| Business Analyst * | $79,080 | $96,332 | $107,941 | 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 | $77,500 | Moderate increase | Significant increase |
| Manufacturing | $44,792 | Moderate decline | Significant increase |
| Retail Trade | $33,280 | Moderate increase | Significant increase |
| Transportation, Warehousing & Utilities | $57,976 | Moderate decline | Significant increase |
| Information | $117,669 | Significant increase | Significant increase |
| Financial Activities | $48,693 | Moderate increase | Significant increase |
| Professional & Business Services | $79,561 | Significant increase | Significant increase |
| Education & Health Services | $53,303 | Moderate increase | Significant increase |
| Leisure & Hospitality | $31,710 | Stable | Significant increase |
| Government | $64,936 | Stable | Significant increase |
Local market conditions
Erie County's unemployment rate held at 3.6% in September while Sandusky County ran higher at 4.3%, a split that reflects the Sandusky MSA's dependence on manufacturing and tourism-linked retail against a backdrop of statewide labor force contraction. Ohio shed 5,000 jobs in September and labor force participation slipped to 61.2% against 61.8% nationally, a trend that appears consistent with what local employers describe as a shrinking pool of available workers even as headline unemployment stays low.
What it means
Local wage movement is uneven and sector-specific: advertised pay for administrative, HVAC, and account management roles in the metro is up significantly while food service pay has fallen, a divergence that points to tightness concentrated in specific sectors. For commerce leaders weighing expansion or investment timing, this split suggests the metro's labor supply constraints are concentrated in skilled trades and office functions, while consumer-facing wage softness may signal thinner household spending power locally. Current conditions suggest monitoring county-level participation data alongside Erie-Sandusky County unemployment divergence before drawing conclusions about metro-wide labor availability.
Looking ahead
Expected: BLS releases October 2026 metro-level employment and unemployment data for the Sandusky MSA on December 2, giving the first direct read on how the metro performed during the month covered by this briefing.
Worth watching: Whether Sandusky County's unemployment rate (4.3% in August) converges toward or diverges further from Erie County's (3.6% in September) will clarify whether the metro's labor tightness is broad or concentrated in one county's industrial base.
Emerging pressure point: Ohio's statewide job losses (5,000 in September) and falling labor force participation raise the question of whether manufacturing-dependent Sandusky MSA, where the sector employs 7.6 thousand workers, will show comparable softening when October data arrives.
Early indicator: Continued softness in food service advertised pay alongside any further drop in labor force participation would strengthen the case that consumer-facing sectors are feeling constrained household spending, a signal relevant to retail and hospitality investment timing in the metro.
Sources
- Ohio Department of Job & Family Services — Erie County unemployment rate 3.6% in September 2026
- Ohio Department of Job & Family Services — Sandusky County unemployment rate 4.3% in August 2026
- Ohio Department of Job and Family Services — Ohio labor force participation at 61.2% vs 61.8% national
- Ohio Department of Job and Family Services — Ohio shed 5,000 jobs in September 2026
- Bureau of Labor Statistics — October 2026 metro employment data releases December 2, 2026
- BLS Midwest Information Office — Sandusky MSA civilian labor force at 61.3 thousand, July 2026
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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