{"schema_version": 1, "id": "de-nonmetropolitan-area/metro-job-market/2026-09", "product": "Metro Job Market Pulse", "metro": {"geography_id": 150, "label": "DE NONMETROPOLITAN AREA", "slug": "de-nonmetropolitan-area"}, "focus_area": {"key": "general_conditions", "slug": "metro-job-market", "label": "General Market Conditions"}, "period": "2026-09", "public_after": "2026-09-01", "frozen_at": "2026-10-09T13:38:32.743162+00:00", "headline": "Sussex unemployment falls, but fewer residents are in the labor force.", "headline_summary": "Sussex County unemployment dropped to 4.3% in July, yet statewide labor force participation fell to 59.7% from 61.0% a year ago, raising the question of whether the improvement reflects job growth or workforce exit.", "key_indicators": [{"label": "Sussex County unemployment", "value": "4.3%", "context": "Down from 4.7% in June; vs 4.4% July 2025"}, {"label": "Delaware labor force participation", "value": "59.7%", "context": "Down from 61.0% a year ago; 44th nationally"}, {"label": "Delaware monthly job growth pace", "value": "200/month avg, 2026", "context": "Double the 100/month pace of 2025"}, {"label": "Delaware wage growth vs inflation", "value": "~4% hourly earnings growth", "context": "Roughly matching inflation, not exceeding it"}], "takeaways": [{"headline": "Falling unemployment partly reflects workers leaving, not just jobs gained.", "body": "Sussex's improvement to 4.3% unemployment comes alongside a statewide 1.3-point participation drop over twelve months, a pattern consistent with structural workforce exits rather than a tightening job market in the conventional sense. Treating the lower rate as a clean economic win risks missing the underlying labor supply story."}, {"headline": "Construction and health care are carrying the county's growth.", "body": "Delaware's 2025 annual data shows healthcare/social assistance up 5.4% and construction among the top gainers, while accommodation/food services fell 2.2% and admin support dropped 3.4%. For a nonmetro economy historically anchored in retail and seasonal hospitality, this is a meaningful compositional shift worth tracking locally."}, {"headline": "Retail and hospitality softness diverges from the state's job-gain headline.", "body": "Delaware added 600 jobs statewide between July and August, yet accommodation/food services lost nearly 1,000 positions over the year, a reminder that county-level, consumer-facing sectors are not sharing equally in statewide gains. Commerce leaders assessing foot-traffic-dependent business activity should weigh sector-specific trends over the statewide topline."}, {"headline": "Wage gains are roughly matching inflation, not exceeding it.", "body": "Delaware hourly earnings rose near 4% year-over-year, tracking closely with inflation rather than delivering real purchasing power gains for area workers. That dynamic caps the consumer spending lift that typically follows wage growth, a relevant signal for any local business climate assessment."}], "local_conditions": "Sussex County unemployment fell to 4.3% in July 2026, improving on last year's 4.4% and outpacing the statewide decline, even as Delaware's overall labor force participation dropped to 59.7% from 61.0% a year earlier. Job gains concentrate in Professional and Business Services, Private Education/Health, and Construction, while manufacturing, retail, and accommodation/food services continue shedding positions, consistent with a two-track recovery playing out across the state's least densely populated county.", "implications": "Falling unemployment paired with shrinking labor force participation points to a tightening labor pool rather than genuine economic strengthening, a distinction that matters for commerce leaders weighing local expansion against a shallower available workforce. Sector divergence favoring healthcare, education, and construction over retail and hospitality suggests capital and foot traffic may be shifting away from consumer-facing commerce toward services and building activity. Current conditions suggest economic development leaders track participation trends alongside headline unemployment when assessing whether county-level improvement reflects real momentum or workforce exit.", "looking_ahead": [{"category": "Early indicator", "body": "Watch whether Sussex County's participation rate stabilizes or continues declining alongside the state's 59.7% figure; a continued slide would reinforce that unemployment improvement is supply-driven rather than demand-driven."}, {"category": "Worth watching", "body": "September's full Delaware Department of Labor report, expected after this briefing's publication, will show whether the five-month unemployment decline extended into fall or plateaued."}, {"category": "Emerging pressure point", "body": "Accommodation/food services and retail trade losses have persisted across multiple reporting periods; continued softness here would matter directly for county tourism-season planning and seasonal business forecasting."}, {"category": "Potential inflection point", "body": "National September payroll growth slowed sharply to 29,000 with downward revisions to prior months \u2014 a reminder that local momentum isn't immune to a broader national cooling, worth monitoring in Delaware's next statewide release."}], "roles": [{"role": "Retail Sales Associate", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 26290.0, "metro_p50": 33280.0, "metro_p75": 35528.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 33325.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Retail Cashier", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 27751.0, "metro_p50": 31946.0, "metro_p75": 33280.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 31200.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Warehouse/Fulfillment Associate", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 33280.0, "metro_p50": 37440.0, "metro_p75": 39520.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 38000.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "CDL Truck Driver", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 60818.0, "metro_p50": 78889.0, "metro_p75": 86000.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 78000.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Delivery Driver", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 31734.0, "metro_p50": 33559.0, "metro_p75": 35805.0, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 34344.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Construction Laborer", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 32206.75, "metro_p50": 36446.2, "metro_p75": 41600.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 40560.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Electrician", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 61758.0, "metro_p50": 69018.0, "metro_p75": 79652.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 71404.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"role": "Manufacturing Production Worker/Assembler", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 34320.0, "metro_p50": 38051.0, "metro_p75": 39853.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 39520.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Customer Service Representative", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 35360.0, "metro_p50": 36679.0, "metro_p75": 38735.0, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 39520.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Food Service Worker", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 29478.25, "metro_p50": 30340.2, "metro_p75": 30984.0, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 33756.2, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Certified Nursing Assistant / Home Health Aide", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 33666.0, "metro_p50": 35965.0, "metro_p75": 38168.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 41106.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Administrative Assistant/Office Clerk", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 33599.0, "metro_p50": 40560.0, "metro_p75": 42640.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 43680.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "HVAC Technician", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 59432.0, "metro_p50": 62613.6, "metro_p75": 74570.5, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 70720.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "Registered Nurse", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 83419.0, "metro_p50": 93600.0, "metro_p75": 102294.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 102581.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"role": "Software Engineer", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 125467.0, "metro_p50": 145583.0, "metro_p75": 150000.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 153652.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Data Engineer", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 87801.0, "metro_p50": 91476.6, "metro_p75": 103353.75, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 139500.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "Accountant", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 58318.0, "metro_p50": 65520.0, "metro_p75": 72500.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 72182.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "Financial Analyst", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 70755.0, "metro_p50": 88783.0, "metro_p75": 88783.0, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 94782.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "HR Generalist/Manager", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 57200.0, "metro_p50": 62400.0, "metro_p75": 62572.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 75000.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"role": "Marketing Specialist", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 50403.0, "metro_p50": 74261.4, "metro_p75": 88632.25, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 62354.4, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "Operations Manager", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 65965.0, "metro_p50": 67500.0, "metro_p75": 67500.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 85216.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Elementary/Secondary School Teacher", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 34840.0, "metro_p50": 46748.0, "metro_p75": 55654.5, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 56731.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"role": "Account Manager", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 50036.25, "metro_p50": 85000.0, "metro_p75": 92542.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 92749.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"role": "Warehouse Manager", "data_scope": null, "metro_p25": null, "metro_p50": null, "metro_p75": null, "metro_trend_direction": null, "metro_trend_magnitude": null, "national_p50": 75000.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Business Analyst", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 84217.0, "metro_p50": 86565.0, "metro_p75": 86565.0, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 98279.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}], "industry_snapshot": [{"sector": "Construction", "median_pay": 48350.0, "pay_trend_direction": "down", "pay_trend_magnitude": "significant", "postings_trend_direction": "down", "postings_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"sector": "Manufacturing", "median_pay": 74000.0, "pay_trend_direction": "down", "pay_trend_magnitude": "significant", "postings_trend_direction": "down", "postings_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"sector": "Retail Trade", "median_pay": 35796.0, "pay_trend_direction": "down", "pay_trend_magnitude": "significant", "postings_trend_direction": "down", "postings_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"sector": "Transportation, Warehousing & Utilities", "median_pay": 45500.0, "pay_trend_direction": "down", "pay_trend_magnitude": "significant", "postings_trend_direction": "down", "postings_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"sector": "Information", "median_pay": 99486.0, "pay_trend_direction": "down", "pay_trend_magnitude": "significant", "postings_trend_direction": "down", "postings_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"sector": "Financial Activities", "median_pay": 56992.0, "pay_trend_direction": "down", "pay_trend_magnitude": "significant", "postings_trend_direction": "down", "postings_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"sector": "Professional & Business Services", "median_pay": 54350.0, "pay_trend_direction": "down", "pay_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "postings_trend_direction": "down", "postings_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"sector": "Education & Health Services", "median_pay": 57200.0, "pay_trend_direction": "down", "pay_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "postings_trend_direction": "down", "postings_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"sector": "Leisure & Hospitality", "median_pay": 32804.0, "pay_trend_direction": "down", "pay_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "postings_trend_direction": "down", "postings_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"sector": "Government", "median_pay": 63491.0, "pay_trend_direction": "up", "pay_trend_magnitude": "significant", "postings_trend_direction": "down", "postings_trend_magnitude": "significant"}], "citations": [], "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": "October 2026", "files": {"html": "de-nonmetropolitan-area/metro-job-market/2026-09.html", "pdf": "de-nonmetropolitan-area/metro-job-market/2026-09.pdf", "sources_html": "de-nonmetropolitan-area/metro-job-market/2026-09.sources.html"}, "published_at": "2026-10-09T13:49:58.783960+00:00", "report_html_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/de-nonmetropolitan-area/metro-job-market/2026-09.html", "report_pdf_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/de-nonmetropolitan-area/metro-job-market/2026-09.pdf"}