{"schema_version": 1, "id": "danville-il-msa/human-resources/2026-10", "product": "Labor Market Pulse", "metro": {"geography_id": 183, "label": "Danville, IL MSA", "slug": "danville-il-msa"}, "focus_area": {"key": "human_resources", "slug": "human-resources", "label": "Human Resources"}, "period": "2026-10", "public_after": "2026-10-01", "frozen_at": "2026-11-03T02:11:45.635208+00:00", "headline": "Danville's jobless rate falls as its job base shrinks.", "headline_summary": "Unemployment dropped to 4.5% from 5.5% a year ago, but Danville shed 400 non-farm jobs over the same period and local HR Coordinator pay fell to $52,000 while the national figure climbed.", "key_indicators": [{"label": "Danville unemployment rate", "value": "4.5%", "context": "Down from 5.5% a year ago; 4.7% in August"}, {"label": "Danville non-farm employment change", "value": "-400 jobs", "context": "Year-over-year, Sept. 2025 to Sept. 2026"}, {"label": "Illinois unemployment rate", "value": "4.6%", "context": "Third straight monthly decline, down from 4.7%"}, {"label": "HR Coordinator advertised pay, metro vs. national", "value": "$52,000 vs. $50,460", "context": "Metro down significantly; national up moderately"}], "takeaways": [{"headline": "Lower unemployment here reflects fewer workers in the labor force.", "body": "Total non-farm employment dropped 400 positions year-over-year even as the jobless rate improved a full point, a pattern consistent with labor force exit. Workforce planning should treat local unemployment improvement as a caution sign on sourcing depth, not a signal of slack supply."}, {"headline": "HR Coordinator pay is falling locally while rising nationally.", "body": "Metro advertised pay for HR Coordinator dropped significantly to $52,000 against a national median of $50,460 that moved up moderately. This divergence may signal local employers testing lower entry-point offers in a market where coordinator-level candidates face fewer competing options."}, {"headline": "HR Business Partner pay is rising fast but still trails the nation by $18,000.", "body": "Metro HRBP advertised pay climbed significantly to $65,832 even as the national median rose to $83,900, leaving a persistent and widening gap. Retention risk concentrates here first if regional employers or remote-eligible national roles begin recruiting against this differential."}, {"headline": "Healthcare hiring growth masks broader sector contraction.", "body": "Private Education-Health Services added 250 jobs year-over-year, the metro's clear bright spot, while Professional-Business Services, Manufacturing and Government all declined. Compensation strategy may benefit from sector-specific benchmarking that treats the metro as several distinct labor markets."}], "local_conditions": "Danville's September unemployment rate fell to 4.5% from 4.7% in August and dropped a full point from 5.5% a year earlier, even as total non-farm employment contracted by 400 jobs over the same period, a divergence that points to labor force shrinkage as the driver. Private Education-Health Services added 250 jobs year-over-year, but Professional-Business Services, Manufacturing, Government, and Trade-Transportation-Utilities all posted losses, consistent with the structural industrial restructuring showing up in Illinois' statewide WARN filings.", "implications": "Falling unemployment alongside shrinking payrolls signals a candidate pool that is both smaller and less contestable \u2014 workers are leaving the labor force rather than losing jobs in large numbers, which tightens sourcing even as headline unemployment looks improved. Advertised pay for HR Coordinator roles locally fell sharply (down, significant magnitude) against a national increase, a divergence that may reflect local employers recalibrating entry-level HR compensation even as healthcare and education hiring firms up elsewhere in the metro. Consider reviewing entry-level HR and administrative pay against the national trend before assuming local softness extends to all roles.", "looking_ahead": [{"category": "Worth watching", "body": "October's statewide and metro unemployment figures are due in early November; watch whether Danville's improvement holds or reflects continued labor force contraction with payrolls still flat or falling."}, {"category": "Emerging pressure point", "body": "Illinois' AI discrimination law and expanded leave mandates (Family NICU Leave, paid lactation breaks) take compliance effect this year; metro employers without dedicated compliance staff may need external support to audit hiring tools and update leave policies."}, {"category": "Early indicator", "body": "Professional-Business Services and Manufacturing job losses locally track Illinois' broader pattern of industrial restructuring; watch whether Danville-area WARN filings increase as they have statewide (up 24% in affected workers for 2026)."}, {"category": "Potential inflection point", "body": "HR Business Partner advertised pay is rising fast locally but remains far below the national median; a widening gap over the next two reporting cycles would strengthen the case for accelerated adjustment to prevent turnover among mid-career HR talent."}], "roles": [{"role": "Compensation Analyst", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 77771.25, "metro_p50": 104444.0, "metro_p75": 114722.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 100798.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "HR Business Partner", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 57500.0, "metro_p50": 65832.0, "metro_p75": 70000.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 83900.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "Benefits Manager", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 72540.25, "metro_p50": 111586.0, "metro_p75": 126544.5, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 118618.2, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "HRIS Analyst", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 76518.0, "metro_p50": 92251.0, "metro_p75": 108223.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 95000.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "HR Coordinator", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 42328.0, "metro_p50": 52000.0, "metro_p75": 52000.0, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 50460.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "Recruiter", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 48000.0, "metro_p50": 67600.0, "metro_p75": 79616.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 67234.2, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Payroll Specialist", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 50308.0, "metro_p50": 64019.0, "metro_p75": 72500.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 61103.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}], "industry_snapshot": [], "citations": [{"source_name": "Illinois Department of Employment Security", "source_url": null, "statement": "Danville MSA unemployment rate fell to 4.5% in September 2026 from 4.7% in August"}, {"source_name": "Illinois Department of Employment Security", "source_url": null, "statement": "Danville non-farm employment dropped 400 jobs year-over-year to 25,525 total"}, {"source_name": "layoffdata.com", "source_url": null, "statement": "Illinois WARN Act notices up 24% in affected workers for 2026"}, {"source_name": "Illinois General Assembly", "source_url": null, "statement": "Illinois AI discrimination law and Family NICU Leave Act compliance requirements"}, {"source_name": "Illinois Department of Employment Security", "source_url": null, "statement": "Illinois unemployment fell to 4.6%, third consecutive monthly decline"}], "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.", "edition_label": "November 2026", "files": {"html": "danville-il-msa/human-resources/2026-10.html", "pdf": "danville-il-msa/human-resources/2026-10.pdf"}, "published_at": "2026-11-03T08:20:42.684238+00:00", "report_html_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/danville-il-msa/human-resources/2026-10.html", "report_pdf_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/danville-il-msa/human-resources/2026-10.pdf"}