Labor Market Pulse · Information Technology · September 2026
Information Technology Labor Market Report: Springfield, OH MSA — September 2026
Springfield IT pay splits: engineers up, infrastructure down.
Software Engineer advertised pay in Springfield hit $162,481, above the national median, while Systems Administrator pay fell to $82,660 even as national rates climbed and 1,341 manufacturing jobs disappear by October 2.
Free archive edition. Published by WageScape as sent to subscribers; data as of September 2026.
Key indicators
- Springfield Software Engineer pay: $162,481 — vs. $153,652 national median
- Springfield Systems Administrator pay: $82,660 — down locally vs. up to $101,168 nationally
- International Motors layoff: 1,341 jobs — Largest Ohio layoff in 5 years, effective Oct. 2
- Clark County unemployment: 3.8% — Below national 4.1%, above Ohio's 3.3%
Key takeaways
Infrastructure pay is falling locally while rising nationally.
Systems Administrator and Network Engineer advertised pay dropped moderately-to-significantly in Springfield even as national rates rose. This divergence is consistent with employers either outsourcing these functions or facing a thinner pool of infrastructure-specific postings following manufacturing-sector contraction.
Software Engineer pay surge signals a strategic reallocation, not just a market quirk.
Springfield's Software Engineer median of $162,481 now exceeds the national figure, a significant local increase against a stable national trend. Current conditions suggest employers are concentrating compensation dollars on build-capability roles rather than spreading investment across traditional IT operations.
The International Motors closure will test the local IT talent pool's depth.
Roshel's acquisition eliminates 1,341 positions by October 2 and does not guarantee workforce transfer, but manufacturing layoffs rarely release IT-specific talent directly. Watch whether displaced plant-adjacent technical staff — PLC, OT, or industrial systems specialists — enter competition for infrastructure and support roles.
IT Project Manager pay softening may reflect delayed capital projects.
A moderate decline in local Project Manager pay, against a rising national rate, is consistent with Springfield employers pausing discretionary technology initiatives amid broader metro employment contraction. Consider whether this signals a near-term freeze on new system implementations rather than reduced demand for the role itself.
Median advertised pay by role — Springfield, OH MSA
| Role | 25th percentile | Median advertised pay | 75th percentile | Metro trend | National median |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Data Scientist * | $113,673 | $140,092 | $157,602 | Stable | $148,250 |
| Systems Administrator | $74,791 | $82,660 | $103,087 | Moderate decline | $101,168 |
| Network Engineer | $78,200 | $86,784 | $117,737 | Significant decline | $114,400 |
| Software Engineer | $126,726 | $162,481 | $166,638 | Significant increase | $153,652 |
| Help Desk/IT Support Specialist | $39,000 | $46,972 | $48,322 | Stable | $53,644 |
| Cybersecurity Analyst * | $82,380 | $99,737 | $116,477 | Moderate increase | $106,790 |
| IT Project Manager | $82,555 | $103,487 | $125,797 | Moderate decline | $117,530 |
* 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
Springfield MSA employment fell 0.4% in June 2026, the steepest decline in Ohio, and the pending closure of 1,341 jobs at International Motors' Springfield Assembly Plant by October 2 compounds an already contracting labor base ahead of the Roshel ownership transition. Statewide labor force contraction — 95,000 fewer Ohioans in the workforce year-over-year — suggests Springfield's tightening candidate pool reflects departures from the labor market rather than genuine employment growth, a dynamic that will shape how competitively IT roles need to be priced to draw talent from a shrinking regional base.
What it means
Local advertised pay for infrastructure-adjacent roles — Systems Administrator down to $82,660, Network Engineer down to $86,784 — is moving against the national grain, where both roles are rising, which may suggest Springfield employers are deprioritizing in-house infrastructure investment just as Software Engineer pay climbs to $162,481, a premium over even the national median. That divergence is consistent with a metro shifting technical headcount toward higher-value engineering and security capacity while treating commodity infrastructure support as a candidate for vendor or contract staffing. Organizations should evaluate whether declining local infrastructure pay reflects reduced demand or simply reduced local supply of qualified candidates before assuming lower-cost hiring is sustainable.
Looking ahead
Expected: International Motors' 1,341 job terminations finalize by October 2 as the Roshel transaction closes; whether Roshel retains any IT, OT, or plant systems staff will clarify how much technical talent actually enters the Springfield candidate pool.
Emerging pressure point: Ohio's labor force has contracted 1.9% even as unemployment falls, the 10th-largest such decline nationally. If this pattern persists in Clark County, Springfield IT employers may face a shrinking applicant pool despite headline unemployment appearing favorable.
Worth watching: Local Systems Administrator and Network Engineer pay is moving opposite the national direction. Track whether this reflects genuine demand softening or a reporting effect from fewer large employers posting infrastructure roles locally.
Potential inflection point: Columbus's data center boom (54% employment growth 2021-2024) sits roughly an hour from Springfield. Watch whether Springfield-based infrastructure and cloud talent begins commuting or relocating toward that demand center, intensifying local retention pressure.
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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