{"schema_version": 1, "id": "lewiston-auburn-me-msa/finance/2026-08", "product": "Labor Market Pulse", "metro": {"geography_id": 236, "label": "Lewiston-Auburn, ME MSA", "slug": "lewiston-auburn-me-msa"}, "focus_area": {"key": "finance", "slug": "finance", "label": "Finance"}, "period": "2026-08", "public_after": "2026-08-01", "frozen_at": "2026-10-09T16:26:02.279059+00:00", "headline": "Lewiston finance pay splits: entry roles surge, FP&A Manager pay slides.", "headline_summary": "Metro Financial Analyst pay rose significantly to $77,925 and Billing Specialist pay to $52,551, while FP&A Manager pay fell to $108,972 against a stable $127,341 national median.", "key_indicators": [{"label": "Maine unemployment rate", "value": "3.2%", "context": "vs 4.1% national, 56th straight month below 4%"}, {"label": "FP&A Manager pay gap", "value": "$108,972 metro", "context": "vs $127,341 national, down significantly"}, {"label": "Maine labor force participation", "value": "58.6%", "context": "Down 1.2 pts in 12 months, 42nd nationally"}, {"label": "Statewide private hourly earnings", "value": "$33.77/hr", "context": "Up 4.2% YoY; Lewiston-Auburn trails average"}], "takeaways": [{"headline": "FP&A Manager pay is falling locally while the national market holds firm.", "body": "Metro median FP&A Manager pay dropped significantly to $108,972 against a stable national figure of $127,341 \u2014 a widening 15% gap that raises retention risk for remote-capable managers with outside offers in hand."}, {"headline": "Financial Analyst and Billing Specialist pay are both climbing sharply.", "body": "Metro Financial Analyst pay rose significantly to $77,925 and Billing Specialist pay rose significantly to $52,551, both outpacing their national counterparts \u2014 a signal that entry-to-mid finance operations roles are where local competition is most acute right now."}, {"headline": "Tax Specialist pay is moving in the opposite direction of national demand.", "body": "Metro Tax Specialist pay fell moderately to $60,771 while the national median climbed significantly to $66,725, a divergence that may reflect thinner local demand or a smaller, less competitive employer pool \u2014 worth checking before assuming this role is easy to fill at current levels."}, {"headline": "Statewide payroll stagnation is masking sector-level tightness.", "body": "Maine added a net 200 payroll jobs in August against 127,000 nationally, but Financial Activities gained jobs even as Leisure/Hospitality and Trade/Transportation contracted \u2014 flat headline numbers can conceal real hiring pressure inside finance functions."}], "local_conditions": "Lewiston-Auburn's labor market held near Maine's statewide unemployment rate of 3.2% in August, but wage growth continues to trail \u2014 private-sector hourly earnings in the metro remain below the $33.77 statewide average even as earnings statewide rose 4.2% year-over-year. Nonfarm payrolls have moved sideways for 28 straight months, and Maine's labor force participation slipping to 58.6% signals a shrinking candidate pool layered on top of already-tight conditions.", "implications": "Financial Activities added jobs statewide over the past year even as Leisure/Hospitality and Trade/Transportation contracted, suggesting finance functions in the Lewiston metro are competing for talent against a shrinking overall labor supply rather than a shrinking finance-specific one. Metro FP&A Manager pay dropping to $108,972 against a stable national median of $127,341 points to a widening geographic discount that could complicate retention if remote-eligible roles put local talent in reach of Portland or out-of-state employers. Consider reviewing whether current FP&A and financial analyst pay levels reflect actual local competition or simply track historical metro averages that predate this gap.", "looking_ahead": [{"category": "Emerging pressure point", "body": "Labor force participation in Maine has fallen 1.2 points over the past year to 58.6%, the 42nd-lowest rate nationally. Watch whether this further constrains the candidate pool for finance operations roles already showing significant local pay growth."}, {"category": "Worth watching", "body": "FP&A Manager pay's decline against a stable national median suggests the metro discount is widening, not stabilizing. Track whether this gap starts showing up in voluntary turnover for finance managers with remote-work flexibility."}, {"category": "Early indicator", "body": "Statewide Financial Activities employment grew even as broader Maine payrolls stalled for a 28th straight month. Confirm whether this local resilience is holding into Q4 budget cycles or reflects a one-time gain already fading."}, {"category": "Potential inflection point", "body": "Maine's minimum wage rises to $15.70 in January 2027, compressing the gap to entry-level finance operations roles like Billing Specialist, already up significantly this year. Model whether current pay bands preserve adequate separation between entry-level and skilled positions."}], "roles": [{"role": "Controller", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 96514.0, "metro_p50": 105916.0, "metro_p75": 107828.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 112500.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Senior Accountant", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 72935.0, "metro_p50": 82500.0, "metro_p75": 85000.0, "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": 61360.0, "metro_p50": 77925.0, "metro_p75": 98644.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 82905.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Billing Specialist", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 43680.0, "metro_p50": 52551.2, "metro_p75": 59779.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 49700.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "Tax Specialist", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 37362.5, "metro_p50": 60771.0, "metro_p75": 64958.75, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 66725.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"role": "Credit Analyst", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 64435.0, "metro_p50": 72945.0, "metro_p75": 81706.5, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 72000.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "FP&A Manager", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 91890.0, "metro_p50": 108972.4, "metro_p75": 116416.0, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 127341.0, "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": "September 2026", "files": {"html": "lewiston-auburn-me-msa/finance/2026-08.html", "pdf": "lewiston-auburn-me-msa/finance/2026-08.pdf"}, "published_at": "2026-10-09T16:34:38.232335+00:00", "report_html_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/lewiston-auburn-me-msa/finance/2026-08.html", "report_pdf_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/lewiston-auburn-me-msa/finance/2026-08.pdf"}