Metro Job Market Pulse · General Market Conditions · October 2026
General Market Conditions Labor Market Report: Wenatchee, WA MSA — October 2026
Wenatchee's unemployment swings mask steady wage gains in healthcare, trades.
Chelan County unemployment ranged from a 3.0% July low to a 4.9% May high — the widest seasonal swing among small U.S. metros — while Registered Nurse advertised pay climbed to a $115,322 local median, above the $102,252 national figure.
Free archive edition. Published by WageScape as sent to subscribers; data as of October 2026.
Key indicators
- Chelan County unemployment (July): 3.0% — Down from 3.6% in June; seasonal low
- Wenatchee metro unemployment (May): 4.9% — Highest among small U.S. metros under 100k labor force
- Registered Nurse advertised pay: $115,322 — vs. $102,252 national median, up significantly
- Washington statewide WARN filings: 16,776 workers — Most of any state nationally, as of Oct. 8
Key takeaways
Seasonal volatility drives the headline number.
Wenatchee's jump from 3.0% unemployment in July to a nation-leading 4.9% in May reflects agriculture and tourism cycles common to the region. Readers comparing Wenatchee's unemployment rate to steadier metros should adjust for this seasonal pattern before drawing conclusions about local economic health.
Healthcare wages are climbing faster than almost anything else locally.
Registered Nurse advertised pay rose to a $115,322 metro median, outpacing the $102,252 national figure and consistent with Confluence Health's active recruitment of nurse practitioners and cardiology physician assistants at $67-$82 per hour. Sustained wage growth in this sector is consistent with a tightening local supply of clinical talent.
Skilled trades pay gains point to construction-sector tightness.
Electrician pay rose to a $77,158 metro median and HVAC Technician to $74,705, both moderate increases that track above national medians. That pattern is consistent with sustained building and infrastructure activity across the valley even as statewide construction data showed mixed signals in September.
Manufacturing pay softness bears watching against statewide WARN activity.
Manufacturing Production Worker/Assembler advertised pay fell significantly to $41,502 locally even as the national figure held stable, a divergence worth tracking given that technology and food-processing WARN filings have been elevated statewide this year, including a 439-worker notice at National Frozen Foods' Moses Lake facility.
Median advertised pay by role — Wenatchee, WA MSA
| Role | 25th percentile | Median advertised pay | 75th percentile | Metro trend | National median |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail Sales Associate | $31,778 | $37,710 | $42,640 | Stable | $33,340 |
| Retail Cashier | $30,797 | $35,953 | $38,106 | Stable | $31,268 |
| Warehouse/Fulfillment Associate | $34,239 | $39,117 | $41,600 | Stable | $38,480 |
| CDL Truck Driver | $60,060 | $74,284 | $83,672 | Moderate increase | $78,872 |
| Delivery Driver | $33,470 | $41,480 | $54,080 | Significant increase | $34,826 |
| Construction Laborer | $35,501 | $46,025 | $50,169 | Moderate increase | $40,727 |
| Electrician | $58,777 | $77,158 | $84,938 | Moderate increase | $71,835 |
| Manufacturing Production Worker/Assembler | $34,238 | $41,502 | $48,495 | Significant decline | $39,520 |
| Customer Service Representative | $34,801 | $39,520 | $44,737 | Stable | $39,520 |
| Food Service Worker | $32,324 | $40,414 | $43,073 | Moderate increase | $33,764 |
| Certified Nursing Assistant / Home Health Aide | $39,520 | $47,940 | $51,480 | Moderate increase | $41,600 |
| Administrative Assistant/Office Clerk | $34,937 | $48,158 | $56,280 | Stable | $44,552 |
| HVAC Technician | $63,246 | $74,705 | $83,200 | Moderate increase | $71,406 |
| Registered Nurse | $92,138 | $115,322 | $125,354 | Significant increase | $102,252 |
| Software Engineer | $123,408 | $162,151 | $179,184 | Moderate increase | $154,403 |
| Data Engineer | $99,470 | $140,000 | $157,518 | Stable | $138,000 |
| Accountant | $59,578 | $71,801 | $80,394 | Moderate increase | $72,000 |
| Financial Analyst | $78,194 | $99,992 | $108,520 | Stable | $94,646 |
| HR Generalist/Manager | $52,000 | $82,153 | $90,000 | Significant increase | $74,477 |
| Marketing Specialist | $43,708 | $59,466 | $71,731 | Stable | $62,916 |
| Operations Manager * | $83,648 | $101,095 | $112,134 | Significant decline | $86,294 |
| Elementary/Secondary School Teacher | $49,600 | $63,033 | $70,000 | Stable | $55,908 |
| Account Manager | $63,400 | $101,010 | $124,160 | Moderate increase | $94,009 |
| Warehouse Manager * | $62,400 | $76,250 | $80,000 | Significant increase | $75,000 |
| Business Analyst | $84,061 | $100,608 | $112,353 | 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 | $95,187 | Moderate increase | Significant increase |
| Manufacturing | $125,000 | Significant increase | Significant increase |
| Retail Trade | $121,113 | Significant increase | Significant increase |
| Transportation, Warehousing & Utilities | $67,418 | Significant increase | Stable |
| Information | $132,645 | Moderate increase | Significant increase |
| Financial Activities | $102,440 | Moderate decline | Moderate decline |
| Professional & Business Services | $106,437 | Moderate increase | Significant increase |
| Education & Health Services | $85,000 | Significant increase | Significant increase |
| Leisure & Hospitality | $44,803 | Significant increase | Significant increase |
| Government | $76,382 | Moderate increase | Significant increase |
Local market conditions
Chelan County's unemployment rate fell to 3.0% in July, down from 3.6% in June, reflecting the seasonal surge in agriculture and tourism employment that characterizes the Wenatchee basin each summer, even as statewide figures show Washington's falling unemployment driven more by labor-force contraction than by hiring strength. Wenatchee's May 2026 unemployment rate of 4.9%, the highest among small metro areas nationally with under 100,000 in the labor force, underscores how seasonal swings dominate the metro's year-round read far more than they do in larger Washington labor markets.
What it means
Wide seasonal swings between a 3.0% summer low and a 4.9% spring high mean economic development and chamber planning should treat point-in-time unemployment readings with caution — a single month's number says more about the calendar than about underlying momentum. Healthcare wage growth (Registered Nurse advertised pay up significantly to a $115,322 metro median) and construction/skilled trades gains (Electrician up to $77,158, HVAC Technician to $74,705) point to where local capacity is tightening, apart from the agricultural cycle. Commerce leaders evaluating the metro's investment climate should weight sector-level wage trends over any single month's headline unemployment figure.
Looking ahead
Expected: Chelan County's unemployment rate typically climbs through late fall and winter as agricultural and tourism employment winds down; watch whether the seasonal rise tracks prior years or deviates meaningfully, which would signal a shift in underlying demand.
Worth watching: Washington's labor force contracted even as unemployment fell three straight months statewide, a pattern distinct from hiring strength. Local economists should watch whether Chelan County's labor force participation follows the same statewide contraction or holds steady given the area's agricultural labor dependency.
Emerging pressure point: Washington sits atop the national WARN registry with 16,776 affected workers, led by the 3,445-worker Gebbers Farms filing in nearby Brewster effective November 25. Spillover into North Central Washington's broader agricultural labor pool is a plausible near-term test of regional absorption capacity.
Potential inflection point: Washington's minimum wage rises to $17.73 per hour on January 1, a 3.5% increase. Retail and food-service employers in the metro, where advertised pay for frontline roles already sits moderately above state floor, should see limited direct disruption, but the increase is a relevant input for commerce leaders tracking consumer-facing cost 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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