Labor Market Pulse · Finance · September 2026
Finance Labor Market Report: Sheboygan, WI MSA — September 2026
Sheboygan finance pay splits: Controllers down, FP&A up.
Metro Controller advertised pay fell to $115,645 against a rising $113,754 national median, while FP&A Manager pay climbed to $116,513 — a bifurcation worth building into 2027 headcount cost planning.
Free archive edition. Published by WageScape as sent to subscribers; data as of September 2026.
Key indicators
- Sheboygan MSA unemployment: 2.9% — vs 4.1% national, down from 3.0% in July
- Controller advertised pay, metro: $115,645 — Down significantly vs $113,754 national (up)
- Wisconsin Financial Activities employment: -0.6% — 158,200 projected 2026 vs 159,100 in 2025
- National F&A Talent Shortage Index: 77% — Reversal from 108% surplus index in 2025
Key takeaways
Controller pay is falling locally while rising nationally.
Metro Controller advertised pay dropped significantly to $115,645 against a national median climbing to $113,754, a reversal from historical norms. This may reflect fewer senior finance openings in a metro still dominated by manufacturing rather than true softening in Controller value — worth distinguishing before resetting bands downward.
FP&A Manager demand is the local outlier worth tracking.
Advertised FP&A Manager pay rose to $116,513 locally even as most other finance roles softened, mirroring the national pattern of F&A leaders prioritizing forecasting and planning talent amid automation of transactional accounting work. Budget cycle and scenario-planning capability appears to be commanding a premium independent of broader metro wage trends.
Tax Specialist pay surged locally, but off a thin base.
Metro Tax Specialist advertised pay rose significantly to $44,358, well below the $65,842 national median, suggesting the metro is playing catch-up on a role nationally flagged as part of the emerging CPA and accountant shortage. Compensation bands set against last year's local data risk falling behind national competition for scarce tax talent.
Low WARN activity masks thin local finance bench strength.
Wisconsin WARN filings are down 7% year over year and Sheboygan unemployment sits well below the national 4.1% rate, meaning few displaced finance professionals are entering the local candidate pool. Tight labor supply alongside soft advertised pay for Controller and Financial Analyst roles points to employers constraining openings rather than finding easier hiring conditions.
Median advertised pay by role — Sheboygan, WI MSA
| Role | 25th percentile | Median advertised pay | 75th percentile | Metro trend | National median |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Controller | $97,847 | $115,645 | $125,000 | Significant decline | $113,754 |
| Senior Accountant * | $74,528 | $82,164 | $85,000 | Stable | $87,731 |
| Financial Analyst | $66,735 | $76,514 | $91,691 | Significant decline | $94,782 |
| Billing Specialist * | $39,547 | $47,359 | $53,118 | Stable | $49,512 |
| Tax Specialist | $34,135 | $44,358 | $72,800 | Significant increase | $65,842 |
| Credit Analyst * | $54,006 | $66,188 | $70,054 | Moderate decline | $71,758 |
| FP&A Manager * | $99,845 | $116,513 | $125,000 | Moderate increase | $128,139 |
* 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
Sheboygan MSA unemployment eased to 2.9% in August from 3.0% in July as the workforce grew to 64,000 employed, yet manufacturing-heavy payrolls remain exposed to the national financial activities contraction that has erased 129,000 jobs since May 2025. Local Financial Analyst and Controller advertised pay are falling against flat-to-rising national medians, consistent with a metro where finance headcount growth is structurally constrained by a shrinking regional insurance and financial services base layered onto Wisconsin's stalled statewide job growth.
What it means
Falling advertised pay for Controller and Financial Analyst roles locally, even as FP&A Manager pay rises, suggests Sheboygan finance departments are consolidating generalist accounting work while paying a premium for strategic planning and forecasting capability — a bifurcation that should inform how headcount cost models are built for 2027 budget cycles. With Wisconsin's Financial Activities sector forecast to contract 0.6% into 2026 and national F&A leaders simultaneously reporting a 77% Talent Shortage Index, local Finance leaders face a tighter market for credentialed talent than headline metro pay data implies. Consider reviewing whether Controller and FP&A Manager compensation bands reflect this diverging demand before budget cycle planning locks in assumptions built on last year's flatter pay curve.
Looking ahead
Potential inflection point: Wisconsin Financial Activities employment is forecast to decline from 159,100 to 158,200 jobs through 2026. Watch whether Sheboygan-area insurers and financial services employers follow this statewide contraction into fourth-quarter headcount decisions.
Worth watching: National financial activities payrolls lost another 7,000 jobs in September, concentrated in insurance carriers, a sector with meaningful regional presence given ACUITY Insurance's footprint. Local finance hiring plans should be stress-tested against continued insurance-sector softening.
Emerging pressure point: National F&A leaders report a 77% Talent Shortage Index for 2026, reversing from a 2025 surplus, even as metro Controller and Financial Analyst advertised pay softened. A gap this wide between national scarcity signals and local pay direction warrants a closer look before fourth-quarter requisitions are finalized.
Early indicator: Average hourly earnings growth decelerated to 3.0% year over year nationally in September, below the 3.2% forecast, easing wage-driven budget pressure. Confirm whether this national deceleration is showing up in Sheboygan's finance-specific advertised pay or whether metro-level softness is driven by role mix rather than broader wage relief.
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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