Sources & References
Metro Job Market Pulse · Bismarck, ND MSA · October 2026
Every advertised-pay, job-posting and industry figure in this briefing comes from WageScape's own database of active job postings. The sources below back the external facts cited in the written analysis.
Sources cited in this report
Key Indicators
Bismarck nonfarm employment fell from 74.4K to 73.6K July-August 2026
Bureau of Labor Statistics — BLS metro nonfarm payroll estimates
This Month's Takeaways
Healthcare accounts for ~3,700 unfilled positions statewide
North Dakota Governor's Workforce Summit — State workforce shortage figures, Sept. 23, 2026
Gov. Armstrong advancing new state workforce department
State of North Dakota — Governor's workforce policy announcement, Sept. 2026
Local Economic Conditions
Bismarck unemployment at 1.9% in July 2026, lowest among small metros
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics / USAFacts — BLS local area unemployment statistics, July 2026
Open Threads in the Data
North Dakota labor force participation at 69.2%, third-highest nationally
Bureau of Labor Statistics — State labor force participation ranking
Looking Ahead
National wage growth at 3.0% against 3.4% inflation
Bureau of Labor Statistics — National average hourly earnings vs. CPI, Sept. 2026
How the numbers are calculated
- Advertised pay is the median of the pay ranges employers publish in active job postings in this metro. It is not survey or payroll data.
- Percent changes compare the latest six full months with the six months before that, for the same metro and sector.
- Sectors group postings by the employer's industry (NAICS) classification into ten sectors. Where a metro has too few postings in a sector, the state figure is used instead.
- Role pay trends use the same comparison windows. "Stable" means a change of less than 3%; "moderate" 3–10%; "significant" more than 10%.
Official data for comparison