{"schema_version": 1, "id": "janesville-wi-msa/finance/2026-09", "product": "Labor Market Pulse", "metro": {"geography_id": 294, "label": "Janesville, WI MSA", "slug": "janesville-wi-msa"}, "focus_area": {"key": "finance", "slug": "finance", "label": "Finance"}, "period": "2026-09", "public_after": "2026-09-01", "frozen_at": "2026-10-09T13:27:42.292451+00:00", "headline": "Janesville finance pay splits sharply by role, not by sector.", "headline_summary": "Local Financial Analyst pay has climbed to $110,000 \u2014 above the $94,782 national median \u2014 while Controller pay has slipped to $107,723, even as Wisconsin's Financial Activities sector is forecast to contract 0.6% in 2026.", "key_indicators": [{"label": "Rock County unemployment", "value": "3.7%", "context": "July 2026, up from 3.1% MSA low in May"}, {"label": "Financial Analyst advertised pay", "value": "$110,000", "context": "vs $94,782 national median \u2014 local premium"}, {"label": "National Financial Activities job losses", "value": "-129,000", "context": "Since May 2025, concentrated in insurance carriers"}, {"label": "National wage growth (Sept)", "value": "3.0% y/y", "context": "Below 3.2% forecast; eases budget pressure short-term"}], "takeaways": [{"headline": "Financial Analyst pay in Janesville now beats the national median.", "body": "Advertised pay for Financial Analyst roles locally sits at $110,000 versus $94,782 nationally, a reversal of the usual metro discount pattern. This is consistent with tight local competition for analytical talent even as broader Financial Activities payrolls contract."}, {"headline": "Controller and Credit Analyst pay are softening locally while national rates climb.", "body": "Both roles show moderate downward movement in metro advertised pay even as national medians rise, widening the local-national gap for Controller to roughly $6,000. Budget cycles that assume parity with national comp trends for these roles risk overcorrecting."}, {"headline": "Sector headcount contraction and talent shortage signals are colliding.", "body": "National data shows Financial Activities shedding 7,000 jobs in September even as 74% of F&A leaders plan to add permanent headcount and report a 77% Talent Shortage Index for accountants. Local hiring plans should expect this tension to show up as longer time-to-fill rather than fewer open roles."}, {"headline": "Wage growth deceleration offers mid-cycle budget relief, not a green light.", "body": "National average hourly earnings grew just 0.13% in September (3.0% year-over-year), below economist expectations, easing near-term salary pressure. Wisconsin's own inflation-adjusted wage erosion, however, means nominal relief may not translate into real cost savings for retention."}], "local_conditions": "Rock County unemployment ran at 3.7% in July, well above the Janesville-Beloit MSA's 3.1% May low, suggesting summer softening consistent with statewide stagnation in job growth despite low headline rates. Local finance headcount faces crosscurrents: national Financial Activities payrolls continue shedding jobs (129,000 lost since May 2025, concentrated in insurance carriers), while Wisconsin's own Financial Activities sector is forecast to contract 0.6% in 2026, even as national F&A leaders report aggressive hiring plans and a 77% Talent Shortage Index for accounting roles.", "implications": "Metro-level advertised pay tells a bifurcated story \u2014 Financial Analyst pay is up significantly to $110,000 (above the $94,782 national median) and Tax Specialist pay has climbed to $71,447, while Controller and Credit Analyst advertised pay have both moved down, pointing to selective scarcity rather than broad-based wage pressure. Headcount cost planning should treat this as a role-by-role problem, not a department-wide one: budget cycles built on flat Financial Activities sector growth risk underfunding the specific skill sets \u2014 analytical and tax \u2014 where local demand is outrunning supply. Consider reviewing FP&A and tax-adjacent compensation bands against current advertised pay before finalizing Q4 budget assumptions, rather than applying a uniform merit increase across the finance function.", "looking_ahead": [{"category": "Expected", "body": "September MSA unemployment data releases in early October and should clarify whether July's 3.7% Rock County reading reflects a genuine summer softening or seasonal noise. Finance leaders finalizing Q4 headcount plans should wait for this print before locking assumptions."}, {"category": "Emerging pressure point", "body": "Wisconsin's Financial Activities sector is forecast to contract 0.6% through 2026 even as advertised pay for Financial Analyst and Tax Specialist roles rises locally \u2014 a sign that headcount reductions and skill-specific scarcity are happening simultaneously. Watch whether displaced finance talent from contracting employers absorbs into open analyst and tax roles or exits the metro labor pool entirely."}, {"category": "Worth watching", "body": "National WARN filings include Amazon, Meta, Verizon, Oracle and Tyson Foods, none with direct Rock County exposure yet, but statewide WARN activity (56 notices, 3,914 workers in 2026) remains manufacturing-heavy. A regional manufacturing layoff could shift local labor supply dynamics quickly given manufacturing's 11,477-worker footprint in Rock County."}, {"category": "Potential inflection point", "body": "National wage growth deceleration (3.0% year-over-year, below forecast) could ease FY2027 salary budget assumptions if it persists through October's jobs report. Finance leaders should treat this as a signal to watch, not yet a confirmed trend, before revising merit increase pools."}], "roles": [{"role": "Controller", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 105184.0, "metro_p50": 107722.8, "metro_p75": 140000.0, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 113754.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "Senior Accountant", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 73955.0, "metro_p50": 84059.2, "metro_p75": 87602.5, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 87731.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Financial Analyst", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 69438.0, "metro_p50": 110000.0, "metro_p75": 110000.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 94782.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Billing Specialist", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 37880.25, "metro_p50": 45687.0, "metro_p75": 46592.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 49512.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "Tax Specialist", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 71447.0, "metro_p50": 71447.0, "metro_p75": 71447.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 65842.4, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"role": "Credit Analyst", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 54006.0, "metro_p50": 66188.0, "metro_p75": 70054.0, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 71758.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "FP&A Manager", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 99845.0, "metro_p50": 116512.8, "metro_p75": 125000.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 128139.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}], "industry_snapshot": [], "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": "janesville-wi-msa/finance/2026-09.html", "pdf": "janesville-wi-msa/finance/2026-09.pdf"}, "published_at": "2026-10-09T13:51:54.894976+00:00", "report_html_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/janesville-wi-msa/finance/2026-09.html", "report_pdf_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/janesville-wi-msa/finance/2026-09.pdf"}