Labor Market Pulse · Finance · October 2026
Finance Labor Market Report: Terre Haute, IN MSA — October 2026
Terre Haute's FP&A pay slides as national rates climb.
Terre Haute's unemployment rose to 3.9% and FP&A Manager advertised pay fell to $112,269 even as the national figure climbed toward $130,000, widening a gap that could pressure retention through year-end close.
Free archive edition. Published by WageScape as sent to subscribers; data as of October 2026.
Key indicators
- Terre Haute unemployment rate: 3.9% — Up from 3.7% in August 2026
- FP&A Manager advertised pay, metro: $112,269 — vs $130,000 national, trending opposite directions
- Indiana labor force change: -18,900 — Past year; signals a shrinking candidate pool
- CFO turnover rate, national: 18.3% — Highest since the pandemic (Crist|Kolder)
Key takeaways
FP&A Manager pay is falling locally while the national rate climbs.
Metro median dropped to $112,269 against a rising $130,000 national figure — a widening gap that makes this role a flight risk to remote postings, particularly as close-cycle demands peak in Q4.
Close-cycle support roles are getting repriced faster than management.
Tax Specialist ($40,342) and Billing Specialist ($36,055) advertised pay both moved up significantly in the metro, even as Senior Accountant and Financial Analyst pay held stable — employers appear to be competing hardest for transactional accuracy roles ahead of audit season.
Labor force contraction is tightening the talent pool.
Indiana's labor force shrank roughly 18,900 over the past year while unemployment still rose, meaning fewer available candidates statewide — a dynamic that compounds hiring difficulty even where local job growth looks healthy.
Manufacturing's strength is pulling against finance's stated hiring plans.
Vigo County manufacturing employment grew 9.09% year-over-year, competing for the same administrative and finance-adjacent talent pool that controllers and FP&A teams draw from locally, even as 74% of finance leaders nationally plan permanent headcount growth in H2.
Median advertised pay by role — Terre Haute, IN MSA
| Role | 25th percentile | Median advertised pay | 75th percentile | Metro trend | National median |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Controller | $84,749 | $99,190 | $100,891 | Moderate increase | $115,420 |
| Senior Accountant * | $73,336 | $80,605 | $85,000 | Stable | $87,731 |
| Financial Analyst * | $67,600 | $84,133 | $92,976 | Stable | $94,646 |
| Billing Specialist | $33,070 | $36,055 | $38,145 | Significant increase | $49,000 |
| Tax Specialist | $31,049 | $40,342 | $40,342 | Significant increase | $69,556 |
| Credit Analyst * | $49,767 | $62,267 | $68,276 | Moderate increase | $71,397 |
| FP&A Manager * | $91,024 | $112,269 | $124,994 | Moderate decline | $130,000 |
* 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
Terre Haute's unemployment rate ticked up to 3.9% in September from 3.7% in August, tracking a statewide pattern where Indiana's rate rose to 3.4% even as the labor force contracted, a sign of workers exiting the labor force. Manufacturing remains the metro's clearest growth engine, with Vigo County employment up 9.09% year-over-year, while finance and professional services nationally continue shedding headcount (-7,000 financial activities jobs in September per BLS), creating a divergence between local industrial demand and the finance function's own hiring caution.
What it means
Advertised pay for Terre Haute's FP&A Manager role fell to a $112,269 median even as the national figure climbed toward $130,000, a gap that widens the risk of losing mid-career finance talent to remote-eligible national postings during a period when 85% of CFOs already report finance talent shortages. Tax Specialist and Billing Specialist pay both moved up significantly locally, suggesting employers are repricing close-cycle support roles faster than management tiers — a pattern that can leave succession pipelines thin just as CFO turnover nationally sits at 18.3%. Consider reviewing whether FP&A Manager compensation is positioned to retain incumbents against national remote competition before year-end close cycles begin.
Looking ahead
Early indicator: Watch whether Indiana's September labor force contraction persists into October data; a continued shrinkage alongside flat job growth would tighten the Terre Haute candidate pool further heading into year-end close.
Emerging pressure point: FP&A Manager pay has moved in opposite directions locally (down) and nationally (up) for two consecutive data points — track whether this gap widens enough to trigger retention risk during budget season.
Worth watching: Indiana's 2026 WARN filings are down 11% from 2025, but manufacturing accounts for 24 of the state's notices — any new filing near Terre Haute's ADVICS, ThyssenKrupp Presta or GE Aviation sites would signal shifting local labor supply for finance support staff.
Potential inflection point: National finance leaders report 70% increasing contract talent use in H2 2026; monitor whether this shift reaches Terre Haute employers, which could ease audit-season staffing gaps but introduce new documentation and control considerations.
Sources
- Federal Reserve Economic Data / BLS — Terre Haute unemployment rose to 3.9% in September 2026
- Indiana Department of Workforce Development — Indiana unemployment rose to 3.4% as labor force shrank
- Hoosiers by the Numbers — Vigo County manufacturing employment grew 9.09% year-over-year
- MAVI — 85% of CFOs report finance talent shortages
- Crist|Kolder Associates — CFO turnover projected at 18.3% in 2026, highest since pandemic
- Indiana Department of Workforce Development — Indiana 2026 WARN filings down 11% from 2025, manufacturing leads
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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