Metro Job Market Pulse · General Market Conditions · October 2026
General Market Conditions Labor Market Report: Springfield, MO MSA — October 2026
Springfield tightens as Missouri's statewide job count slips.
Springfield's jobless rate fell near 3.7% in September even as Missouri shed 10,600 jobs statewide, with Registered Nurse advertised pay climbing to $99,588 locally.
Free archive edition. Published by WageScape as sent to subscribers; data as of October 2026.
Key indicators
- Springfield unemployment rate: ~3.7% — Down ~0.5 pt in September; below 4.1% U.S. rate
- Missouri statewide payrolls: -10,600 jobs — September 2026 decline vs. metro's resilience
- Metro average weekly wage: $1,110 — vs. $1,569 U.S. average, Q4 2025
- Metro monthly job growth pace: ~333 jobs/month — 2026 average, steady not accelerating
Key takeaways
Springfield is moving opposite the state's September slowdown.
Missouri lost 10,600 jobs statewide in September while Springfield's jobless rate dropped roughly half a point to near 3.7%, a divergence that points to the metro's healthcare- and manufacturing-heavy base cushioning it from sectors (professional services, financial activities) driving the state's decline.
Wage gains are concentrated in skilled trades and technical roles.
Electrician advertised pay rose significantly locally to $69,079 and Registered Nurse pay climbed to $99,588, both outpacing the metro's broader wage picture — a pattern consistent with sustained demand in construction-adjacent trades and healthcare that is driving targeted wage gains in those fields.
Two area WARN notices this year stayed contained and sector-specific.
Springfield Mechanical Services (53 workers, September) and Great Southern Bank (45 workers, July) were isolated, sector-specific events — Missouri's statewide WARN-affected worker count actually fell 41% year over year, reinforcing that local disruptions remain limited in scale.
Metro wages still trail the national line by a wide margin.
Springfield's Q4 2025 average weekly wage of $1,110 compares to a U.S. average of $1,569, a gap that shapes the metro's cost-of-living advantage and continues to factor into regional location and investment decisions even as local unemployment runs tighter than the national rate.
Median advertised pay by role — Springfield, MO MSA
| Role | 25th percentile | Median advertised pay | 75th percentile | Metro trend | National median |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail Sales Associate | $25,649 | $31,566 | $35,890 | Stable | $33,340 |
| Retail Cashier | $25,802 | $29,996 | $31,720 | Moderate increase | $31,268 |
| Warehouse/Fulfillment Associate | $31,832 | $34,655 | $37,961 | Moderate decline | $38,480 |
| CDL Truck Driver | $57,766 | $75,500 | $85,000 | Stable | $78,872 |
| Delivery Driver | $29,589 | $34,320 | $41,600 | Moderate increase | $34,826 |
| Construction Laborer | $31,200 | $38,480 | $41,600 | Stable | $40,727 |
| Electrician | $58,257 | $69,079 | $74,727 | Significant increase | $71,835 |
| Manufacturing Production Worker/Assembler | $31,600 | $35,360 | $37,620 | Stable | $39,520 |
| Customer Service Representative | $31,982 | $36,355 | $39,520 | Stable | $39,520 |
| Food Service Worker | $28,440 | $32,240 | $33,280 | Moderate increase | $33,764 |
| Certified Nursing Assistant / Home Health Aide | $31,604 | $36,146 | $39,820 | Stable | $41,600 |
| Administrative Assistant/Office Clerk | $33,280 | $39,520 | $42,921 | Stable | $44,552 |
| HVAC Technician | $53,500 | $60,781 | $73,102 | Stable | $71,406 |
| Registered Nurse | $83,790 | $99,588 | $106,392 | Significant increase | $102,252 |
| Software Engineer | $102,264 | $130,469 | $151,576 | Significant increase | $154,403 |
| Data Engineer | $79,780 | $114,356 | $124,913 | Moderate decline | $138,000 |
| Accountant | $50,893 | $62,342 | $67,500 | Moderate increase | $72,000 |
| Financial Analyst | $64,458 | $84,271 | $89,649 | Moderate increase | $94,646 |
| HR Generalist/Manager | $49,343 | $57,099 | $61,789 | Stable | $74,477 |
| Marketing Specialist | $42,194 | $50,904 | $62,500 | Significant increase | $62,916 |
| Operations Manager * | $66,901 | $80,684 | $87,686 | Significant increase | $86,294 |
| Elementary/Secondary School Teacher | $32,240 | $43,295 | $50,741 | Moderate decline | $55,908 |
| Account Manager | $57,141 | $73,457 | $87,403 | Moderate decline | $94,009 |
| Warehouse Manager * | $70,000 | $81,594 | $103,119 | Moderate decline | $75,000 |
| Business Analyst | $79,535 | $104,072 | $120,503 | Moderate increase | $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 | $48,515 | Moderate increase | Significant increase |
| Manufacturing | $57,131 | Moderate increase | Moderate increase |
| Retail Trade | $40,570 | Moderate increase | Significant decline |
| Transportation, Warehousing & Utilities | $56,680 | Significant increase | Moderate decline |
| Information | $107,352 | Significant increase | Significant increase |
| Financial Activities | $51,158 | Moderate decline | Significant decline |
| Professional & Business Services | $69,157 | Stable | Moderate decline |
| Education & Health Services | $72,500 | Significant increase | Moderate decline |
| Leisure & Hospitality | $31,765 | Stable | Significant decline |
| Government | $61,273 | Significant increase | Significant decline |
Local market conditions
Springfield's unemployment rate fell roughly half a percentage point in September to a range near 3.7%, moving against the statewide pattern of a 10,600-job decline in Missouri payrolls that month, and suggesting the metro's labor market is tightening even as the state's aggregate figures soften. Healthcare and manufacturing remain the metro's largest employment bases and continue to anchor job growth, with the area averaging roughly 333 net new jobs per month through 2026 — a pace consistent with steady, non-overheated expansion.
What it means
Divergence between Springfield's improving jobless rate and Missouri's September payroll contraction is consistent with a metro economy that is, for now, insulated from broader state-level softness concentrated in professional services and financial activities. Commerce leaders weighing expansion or investment timing should treat the metro's sub-4% unemployment and continued healthcare/manufacturing momentum as a more reliable local signal than statewide headlines, which are being pulled down by sectors with limited Springfield footprint. Consider tracking local sector-level job ad volume (a signal of hiring demand; one ad often covers several openings) over the next quarter before drawing conclusions from state or national payroll prints alone.
Looking ahead
Worth watching: Missouri's September statewide job losses were concentrated in professional/business services and financial activities — sectors with limited but non-zero Springfield presence. Watch whether the metro's October figures hold their divergence from the state trend or begin to converge.
Early indicator: Healthcare and manufacturing have carried Springfield's job growth through 2026; Registered Nurse advertised pay is up significantly and manufacturing added jobs nationally in September. Local sector-level job ad volume (a signal of hiring demand; one ad often covers several openings) in these two categories over the next two months will signal whether momentum is broadening or narrowing.
Policy signal: Missouri's $15 minimum wage, now in full effect without CPI indexing after legislative repeal of the Proposition A adjustment mechanism, removes an automatic future wage escalator. Commerce and government readers should watch how this shapes entry-level advertised pay trends in retail and food service over coming quarters, presented here as fact rather than advocacy.
Potential inflection point: National wage growth (4.1% average hourly earnings) continues to outpace Springfield's gap to the national average weekly wage. If that national trend persists while Springfield's pace holds flat, the metro's relative affordability advantage for employers could narrow gradually.
Sources
- Springfield Business Journal — Springfield metro unemployment rate near 3.7% in September 2026
- Missouri Department of Economic Development / BLS — Missouri lost 10,600 jobs statewide in September 2026
- LayoffIQ/WARN Act Notices — Missouri WARN-affected workers fell 41% year over year
- BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages — Springfield Q4 2025 average weekly wage of $1,110 vs. U.S. $1,569
- Missouri HB 567 — Missouri minimum wage set at $15/hour without CPI indexing
- Springfield Business Journal — Springfield metro averaged 333 net new jobs per month in 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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