Labor Market Pulse · Human Resources · October 2026
Human Resources Labor Market Report: WY NONMETROPOLITAN AREA — October 2026
Wyoming's rural counties split between scarcity and mining fallout.
Teton County unemployment sits at 1.8% while Sweetwater County employment fell 11.2% year-over-year, leaving nonmetro Wyoming employers navigating both acute talent scarcity and a mining-driven labor release in the same labor market.
Free archive edition. Published by WageScape as sent to subscribers; data as of October 2026.
Key indicators
- Teton County unemployment: 1.8% — Lowest in Wyoming, vs 3.0% statewide
- Sweetwater County employment change: -11.2% — Year-over-year, steepest decline statewide
- Wyoming statewide unemployment: 3.0% — Unchanged since August, vs 4.2% U.S. rate
- Mining sector employment change: -2.5% to -3.8% — Statewide decline, varies by quarter/measure
Key takeaways
Teton and Crook counties show acute talent scarcity.
Unemployment at 1.8% and 2.2% respectively leaves little slack for employers to fill roles through open-market recruiting. Retention investment in these counties likely carries more weight than incremental pay increases alone.
Mining's decline may be releasing skilled talent into nearby markets.
Sweetwater and Niobrara counties posted employment drops near 11% year-over-year as mining continues contracting statewide. Construction and energy-adjacent employers in neighboring counties may find an opening to recruit experienced trades workers without the wage premium mining historically commanded.
HR Coordinator pay is climbing faster locally than nationally.
Advertised pay for HR Coordinator roles rose significantly to a $55,000 metro median, ahead of the $50,460 national figure. Rising entry-level HR pay in a low-unemployment market suggests compensation teams are competing harder for administrative and junior talent than national data alone would indicate.
Payroll Specialist pay softened sharply against a rising national trend.
Metro median pay fell significantly to $48,500 while the national median rose to $61,103, a divergence worth investigating before drawing conclusions about local labor softness. Confirm whether this reflects a shift in role scope, remote competition, or a thinning sample of local postings before adjusting pay bands.
Median advertised pay by role — WY NONMETROPOLITAN AREA
| Role | 25th percentile | Median advertised pay | 75th percentile | Metro trend | National median |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Compensation Analyst | $75,675 | $96,315 | $113,211 | Significant increase | $100,798 |
| HR Business Partner | $54,272 | $77,500 | $85,000 | Significant increase | $83,900 |
| Benefits Manager * | $107,607 | $107,607 | $114,573 | Stable | $118,618 |
| HRIS Analyst * | $76,650 | $114,255 | $115,756 | Stable | $95,000 |
| HR Coordinator | $43,680 | $55,000 | $61,787 | Significant increase | $50,460 |
| Recruiter | $50,372 | $62,695 | $73,186 | Moderate increase | $67,234 |
| Payroll Specialist | $46,798 | $48,500 | $53,252 | Significant decline | $61,103 |
* 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
Wyoming's nonmetropolitan counties held a 3.0% statewide unemployment rate in September, with Teton (1.8%), Crook (2.2%), and Albany (2.2%) counties running well below that floor, while mining-dependent Sweetwater and Niobrara counties posted year-over-year employment declines near 11% as the sector continues shedding workers statewide. Private education and health services expansion (up 2.5%) and a rebound in mineral severance tax receipts, tied to oil prices up 18.6% year-over-year, point to a labor market pulled in two directions — sustained healthcare hiring demand against the possibility of mining rehiring if energy prices hold.
What it means
Sub-3% unemployment in counties like Teton and Crook signals employers there are competing for a shrinking applicant pool, while mining-region softness in Sweetwater and Niobrara may free up skilled trades and operations talent that healthcare and construction employers could recruit opportunistically. Housing affordability continues to suppress offer acceptance rates in rural counties, meaning compensation alone may not close hiring gaps without relocation or housing-adjacent benefits support. Organizations should evaluate whether current offer packages address housing friction directly, particularly for entry-level and shift-based roles in tight-labor counties.
Looking ahead
Early indicator: Watch whether oil price strength sustains through year-end; continued mineral severance tax growth could trigger mining rehiring that pulls trades and operations talent back out of construction and energy-adjacent roles.
Emerging pressure point: Housing affordability is already causing declined offers in rural counties. Track whether this worsens as healthcare and education hiring continues to expand, intensifying competition for a limited local workforce.
Compliance deadline: DOL's restored $35,568 overtime exemption threshold took effect in May; nonmetro employers should confirm exempt classifications are current before year-end payroll audits, particularly for supervisory roles near the threshold.
Worth watching: October's statewide unemployment figure publishes November 23. A move away from the stable 3.0% rate would be the first meaningful shift since spring and worth benchmarking against county-level trends already in motion.
Sources
- Wyoming Department of Workforce Services — September unemployment rates by Wyoming county
- Wyoming Department of Workforce Services — Sweetwater and Niobrara counties' year-over-year employment decline
- Wyoming Division of Economic Analysis — Mineral severance tax receipts up 18.6% year-over-year
- Wyoming Department of Workforce Services — Housing affordability suppressing job offer acceptance in rural Wyoming
- U.S. Department of Labor — DOL overtime exemption threshold restored to $35,568/year
- Wyoming Department of Workforce Services — Wyoming statewide unemployment rate held at 3.0% in September
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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