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Florence jobless rate falls as the job count quietly shrinks.
96,200
Florence MSA employment
Down 400 jobs YoY, 200 MoM (June 2026)
4.6%
Florence County unemployment
Down from 4.8% metro rate in June (July 2026)
$903.56
Florence avg weekly wage
Up 15.3% YoY, down 1.2% MoM
4.1%
SC statewide unemployment
vs Florence metro's 4.8-4.6% range
This Month's Takeaways
Falling unemployment is not the same as job growth here.
Florence MSA employment fell by 400 jobs year-over-year even as the unemployment rate declined to 4.8% in June and 4.6% by July in Florence County, a combination that typically reflects labor-force contraction rather than hiring strength. Public statements built solely on the unemployment rate risk overstating the metro's momentum.
Wage data is sending two contradictory signals at once.
Average weekly wages jumped 15.3% year-over-year but fell 1.2% month-over-month, a gap wide enough to suggest compositional change (fewer, higher-paid workers, overtime swings, or industry mix shift) rather than a clean read on purchasing power. Treat the year-over-year figure cautiously until a longer run of data confirms direction.
Transportation and warehousing looks like the metro's structural growth bet.
Projections show the sector expanding from 9,116 to 13,030 jobs, a 42.9% increase that stands out against the metro's otherwise flat employment base. Economic development messaging has a defensible, specific growth story here even while headline job counts stagnate.
No major layoff or expansion announcements this month is itself a signal.
Outside the earlier Koppers Inc. WARN filing for 66 workers, the metro shows no fresh large-scale hiring or layoff news for September, consistent with a consolidation phase rather than active expansion or contraction. Commerce leaders should read this as a stable, low-volatility backdrop rather than either a risk or an opportunity signal.
Local Economic Conditions
Florence MSA employment held essentially flat at 96,200 jobs through June 2026, down 400 positions year-over-year, even as the metro unemployment rate eased to 4.8% and Florence County's rate tightened further to 4.6% by July — a pattern consistent with a labor force gradually absorbing into a slowly shrinking job base rather than robust job creation. Average weekly wages in Florence rose a striking 15.3% year-over-year to $903.56 even as they slipped 1.2% month-over-month, a divergence that likely reflects compositional shifts (overtime, sector mix, or a smaller but higher-paid workforce) more than broad-based pay acceleration across the metro's basket of occupations.
Open Threads in the Data
Flat-to-declining headcount alongside falling unemployment suggests the Florence metro's labor market is tightening through attrition and labor-force exit rather than expansion, a dynamic commerce leaders should distinguish from genuine growth momentum when assessing the local business climate. Construction Laborer and Administrative Assistant pay both posted significant local gains even as Financial Analyst and HR-adjacent roles declined, pointing to uneven sector momentum rather than a uniform upswing. Current conditions suggest local economic development and chamber leadership should weight employment-count trends alongside unemployment-rate trends when characterizing the metro's trajectory publicly, since the two are sending different signals this month.
