Jacksonville jobless rate ticks up as labor force keeps shrinking.
4.2%
Metro unemployment rate
Up from 3.9% in June; NC state rate 3.5%
71,000
Civilian labor force
Down from 72,500 in January 2026
800,300
Metro nonfarm employment
+2,600 jobs (+0.3%) year-over-year through June
$1,198
Average weekly wage (NC)
Down 0.3% year-over-year statewide
This Month's Takeaways
01
Unemployment tick-up masks a shrinking labor pool, not weaker demand.
Jacksonville's rate rose to 4.2% from 3.9% in June even as payrolls grew 0.3% over the year, while the civilian labor force fell from 72,500 to 71,000 over the same window. That combination is consistent with people exiting the labor force rather than a genuine downturn in job availability — a distinction that matters for how the metro's growth story gets told.
02
Health care and professional services are carrying the metro's growth.
Education and Health Services advanced 4.8% annually and Professional and Business Services 2.0%, outpacing the metro's overall 0.3% payroll growth. Onslow Memorial Hospital's footprint and a modestly diversifying services sector appear to be offsetting softer momentum elsewhere in the local basket.
03
Advertised pay for skilled trades diverges sharply from retail and delivery roles.
HVAC technician pay sits at $81,120 locally versus $70,720 nationally, while delivery driver pay fell significantly to $32,037. Widening local spread between trades/logistics and consumer-facing retail work is consistent with the statewide pattern of wage gains concentrating in higher-paying occupations while middle- and lower-wage roles lag.
04
Military and hospital anchors provide stability state job growth elsewhere lacks.
North Carolina's manufacturing sector remains the state's largest net job loser, yet Jacksonville manufacturing still posted modest 1.4% annual growth. Public-sector and institutional anchors — the Marine Corps presence and the regional hospital system — appear to be insulating the metro from the sharper sector swings showing up in statewide and national data.
Local Economic Conditions
Jacksonville MSA unemployment edged up to 4.2% in preliminary August data from 3.9% in June, running slightly above both the North Carolina rate of 3.5% and signaling a modest softening even as nonfarm payrolls grew 2,600 jobs (+0.3%) over the year to 800,300. The metro's civilian labor force continued contracting, from 72,500 in January to 71,000 by June, consistent with the statewide pattern of shrinking labor supply tied to slowing population growth and declining participation rather than a collapse in local demand.
Open Threads in the Data
Growth concentrated in Education and Health Services (+4.8%), Professional and Business Services (+2.0%), and Manufacturing (+1.4%) suggests the metro's economic base remains anchored by Onslow Memorial Hospital, Camp Lejeune-linked military spending, and a modestly diversifying private sector rather than broad-based expansion. Shrinking labor force paired with a ticking-up unemployment rate is an unusual combination worth monitoring — it may reflect fewer people actively searching rather than genuine cooling, which matters for how local officials and commerce groups characterize the metro's growth story to prospective investors. Current conditions suggest commerce leaders should frame local economic messaging around labor force participation trends alongside the headline unemployment rate, rather than unemployment alone.
Advertised Pay Indicators · WageScape Benchmark 25 Jobs
Job postings data for the Jacksonville, NC MSA metro — median advertised pay, its recent trend, and the number of active postings behind each figure. Jobs are grouped for readability and are not the same as the 10 sector classifications on the next page. For additional job detail contact WageScape.
Retail Trade
| Retail Sales Associate |
$27,040 |
→ Stable |
888 |
| Retail Cashier |
$24,960 |
↓ Moderate decline |
489 |
Transportation & Warehousing
| Warehouse/Fulfillment Associate |
$39,520 |
↑ Significant increase |
73 |
| CDL Truck Driver |
$74,591 |
↑ Significant increase |
648 |
| Delivery Driver |
$32,037 |
↓ Significant decline |
865 |
| Warehouse Manager |
— |
Limited local postings |
— |
Construction
| Construction Laborer |
$34,320 |
↓ Moderate decline |
74 |
Construction/Skilled Trades
| Electrician |
$60,320 |
→ Stable |
98 |
| HVAC Technician |
$81,120 |
→ Stable |
74 |
Manufacturing
| Manufacturing Production Worker/Assembler |
$36,836 |
↑ Moderate increase |
20 |
Cross-Sector
| Customer Service Representative |
$35,360 |
↑ Moderate increase |
80 |
| Operations Manager |
— |
Limited local postings |
— |
Leisure & Hospitality
| Food Service Worker |
$38,313 |
↓ Significant decline |
98 |
Healthcare
| Certified Nursing Assistant / Home Health Aide |
$37,440 |
→ Stable |
385 |
| Registered Nurse |
$95,175 |
↑ Significant increase |
686 |
Admin/Office Support
| Administrative Assistant/Office Clerk |
$37,652 |
↑ Moderate increase |
262 |
Information/Technology
| Software Engineer |
— |
Limited local postings |
— |
| Data Engineer |
$126,436 |
→ Stable |
6,795 |
Professional & Business Services
| Accountant |
$74,049 |
↓ Moderate decline |
41 |
| HR Generalist/Manager |
$67,656 |
↑ Moderate increase |
2,154 |
| Marketing Specialist |
— |
Limited local postings |
— |
| Business Analyst |
$97,436 |
→ Stable |
6,199 |
Finance & Insurance
| Financial Analyst |
$88,461 |
→ Stable |
3,694 |
Government/Education
| Elementary/Secondary School Teacher |
$38,480 |
↑ Significant increase |
566 |
Cross-Sector Sales
| Account Manager |
$83,429 |
↑ Significant increase |
40 |
Industry Snapshot · Jacksonville, NC MSA
Advertised pay and job-posting trends across the whole metro economy, rolled up by employer industry — not just the bellwether roles above.
| Sector |
Median Pay Change |
Job Postings Change |
| Construction |
↑ +7.5% |
↑ +131.4% |
| Manufacturing |
↑ +11.5% |
↑ +245.2% |
| Retail Trade |
↑ +6.7% |
↑ +83.6% |
| Transportation, Warehousing & Utilities |
↑ +8.6% |
↑ +105.6% |
| Information |
→ +0.1% |
↑ +86.5% |
| Financial Activities |
↓ −3.5% |
↑ +150.0% |
| Professional & Business Services |
↓ −9.0% |
↑ +95.3% |
| Education & Health Services |
↓ −12.1% |
↑ +120.9% |
| Leisure & Hospitality |
↓ −7.4% |
↑ +38.5% |
| Government |
↑ +90.6% |
↑ +1166.7% |
Looking Ahead · Next 30–60 Days
Early indicator
Watch whether the Jacksonville MSA's rising unemployment rate (4.2% from 3.9%) persists into the next BLS release or reverses once seasonal and labor force effects settle. A sustained rise alongside continued labor force contraction would be a materially different story than a one-month blip.
Worth watching
North Carolina's 13 WARN notices filed in the past 90 days hit manufacturing, transportation/logistics, and healthcare hardest statewide; none have yet surfaced specifically in Onslow County. Commerce and economic development leaders should track whether any statewide manufacturing pressure reaches local plants over the next reporting cycle.
Policy-relevant
Statewide reporting ties declining foreign-born labor participation to construction and agriculture sector pressure. Jacksonville's construction-adjacent advertised pay (Construction Laborer down moderately to $34,320) bears watching as a local proxy for whether this dynamic is reaching the metro's building trades.
Potential inflection point
National wage growth has slipped to 3.0% against 3.4% inflation — the first sustained real-wage decline in two years. Local wage data lags nationally, so a similar erosion in Jacksonville's $1,198 average weekly wage (already down 0.3% year-over-year statewide) would be a signal worth flagging for consumer spending forecasts.
Sources & Methodology
Pay and hiring data provided by WageScape. See every source cited in this report, with links →
Advertised pay reflects the pay ranges employers publish in active job postings in this metro, not survey or payroll data. Pay trends compare the current period with the prior period for the same metro and role. Sector figures group postings by the employer's industry classification; sectors with limited classified postings are marked as such rather than estimated. This briefing is independent of, and complements, official statistics from the BLS and state labor market information offices.
WageScape Metro Member Benefit
Track more metros with Metro Job Market Pulse.
This briefing covers one metro area. Add coverage if your beat, jurisdiction, or membership footprint spans more than one market.
Pulse Plus
3 metro reports
$149/year
Pulse Pro
10 metro reports
$349/year
Enterprise
Nationwide — top 50 markets
$999/year
See plans & upgrade →
Scan or click to add coverage
Need a Deeper Cut of the Data?
WageScape's underlying advertised-pay platform is available directly for a specific occupation, a neighboring county, or a custom time window. Contact us at info@wagescape.com to discuss what WageScape can do for you.
Forwarded This Briefing?
Receive your own monthly briefing, filtered to your local market. Contact info@wagescape.com.
