{"schema_version": 1, "id": "macon-ga-msa/metro-job-market/2026-09", "product": "Metro Job Market Pulse", "metro": {"geography_id": 275, "label": "Macon, GA MSA", "slug": "macon-ga-msa"}, "focus_area": {"key": "general_conditions", "slug": "metro-job-market", "label": "General Market Conditions"}, "period": "2026-09", "public_after": "2026-09-01", "frozen_at": "2026-10-09T13:40:55.750827+00:00", "headline": "Macon's low jobless rate hides a shrinking job count.", "headline_summary": "Bibb County unemployment near 3.9% looks strong against the 4.2% national rate, but county payrolls fell roughly 3,600 jobs year over year even as Georgia posted record statewide employment.", "key_indicators": [{"label": "Bibb County unemployment rate", "value": "3.9%-4.3%", "context": "vs 4.2% national, 3.2% Georgia statewide"}, {"label": "Bibb County employment change", "value": "-3,629 jobs YoY", "context": "2025 vs 2024, despite low jobless rate"}, {"label": "Georgia labor force", "value": "5,490,319", "context": "All-time state high, August 2026"}, {"label": "National wage growth vs inflation", "value": "3.0% vs 3.4%", "context": "Real wages declining, lowest growth since May 2021"}], "takeaways": [{"headline": "Low jobless rate masks a shrinking local payroll base.", "body": "Bibb County unemployment near 3.9%-4.3% looks healthy next to the 4.2% national rate, but a 3,629-job year-over-year decline in county employment suggests the tight rate partly reflects fewer people working or searching, not surplus demand. Economic development planning should treat the unemployment rate as a lagging, partial indicator rather than a standalone health signal."}, {"headline": "Wage declines cluster in logistics and office-support roles locally.", "body": "Advertised pay fell significantly for warehouse/fulfillment, delivery driver, and administrative assistant work in Macon even as national figures for these same roles held stable or rose, pointing to metro-specific softness rather than a national trend. That divergence matters for any commerce-development pitch built around a lower-cost, logistics-friendly workforce."}, {"headline": "Construction pay strength stands out against a broader soft patch.", "body": "Construction laborer advertised pay rose significantly in Macon (to $43,156) while Georgia construction employment fell 3,200 jobs over the year statewide, suggesting localized building activity or project-specific demand is bidding up pay even as the broader state sector contracts. Worth tracking against any announced local infrastructure or commercial development pipeline."}, {"headline": "Healthcare remains Macon's most dependable growth engine.", "body": "Registered nurse pay rose moderately locally to $98,578, consistent with healthcare's role as Georgia's top annual job-gaining sector (+19,100 statewide) and Macon's concentration of hospital systems including Atrium Health Navicent and Piedmont Macon. Public-sector and health-system stability continues to anchor the metro's employment base even as other sectors soften."}], "local_conditions": "Macon-Bibb's unemployment rate sat near 3.9% through late 2025, well below the national 4.2% reading, even as Bibb County payrolls shrank by roughly 3,600 jobs year over year, a divergence consistent with workers exiting the labor force rather than widespread job creation. Georgia's statewide momentum \u2014 record labor force and employment highs alongside a 3.2% jobless rate \u2014 provides a favorable backdrop, but local wage data showing broad declines across retail, warehouse, administrative and technical roles suggests Macon's recovery is uneven relative to the state's.", "implications": "Low local unemployment paired with falling job counts points to a tightening labor pool that is shrinking in absolute size, a dynamic that affects site-selection and expansion math differently than a simple \"tight labor market\" headline would suggest. Commerce leaders evaluating capital investment or relocation incentives should weigh labor force trends alongside unemployment rate, since a low rate with declining employment signals constrained \u2014 not necessarily abundant \u2014 local labor supply. Consider reviewing Bibb County's labor force participation trend alongside Georgia's 61.1% state figure before finalizing assumptions about workforce availability for any new commercial or civic project.", "looking_ahead": [{"category": "Data gap to monitor", "body": "Official BLS metro-level unemployment figures for Macon lag through roughly December 2025, leaving a reporting gap on current conditions. Government economists and chambers should flag this lag when citing metro unemployment publicly and watch for the Georgia Department of Labor's next monthly county release."}, {"category": "Early indicator", "body": "Federal and professional/technical services employment is contracting statewide (federal down 9,400, professional/technical down 11,600 year over year), a trend that could filter into Macon given its state-government and Robins Air Force Base-adjacent economic ties. Local economic development offices should watch for any announced federal or contractor-related workforce changes regionally."}, {"category": "Worth watching", "body": "National wage growth has slowed to 3.0%-3.1% against 3.4% inflation, eroding real purchasing power; if Macon's locally declining advertised pay in retail and logistics roles continues alongside this national gap, local consumer spending capacity could soften further. Retail and hospitality-dependent commerce leaders should track this as a demand-side signal, not just a labor-supply one."}, {"category": "Potential inflection point", "body": "Construction laborer pay is rising sharply locally even as statewide construction jobs declined, an unusual pairing worth confirming against any specific Macon-area project announcements in the next two months. A reversal or confirmation here will clarify whether this is a genuine local building boom or a short-lived pay anomaly."}], "roles": [{"role": "Retail Sales Associate", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 24376.0, "metro_p50": 30600.0, "metro_p75": 38801.0, "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": 21840.0, "metro_p50": 24705.0, "metro_p75": 27040.0, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 31200.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Warehouse/Fulfillment Associate", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 30603.5, "metro_p50": 34195.0, "metro_p75": 35734.0, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 38000.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "CDL Truck Driver", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 60000.0, "metro_p50": 80600.0, "metro_p75": 88463.0, "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": 26856.0, "metro_p50": 31221.0, "metro_p75": 35575.25, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 34344.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Construction Laborer", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 31200.0, "metro_p50": 43156.0, "metro_p75": 45760.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 40560.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Electrician", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 47840.0, "metro_p50": 62400.0, "metro_p75": 70614.0, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 71404.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"role": "Manufacturing Production Worker/Assembler", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 28080.0, "metro_p50": 30160.0, "metro_p75": 30680.0, "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": 31521.0, "metro_p50": 37044.0, "metro_p75": 40836.5, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 39520.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Food Service Worker", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 25970.25, "metro_p50": 28496.6, "metro_p75": 29543.75, "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": 27925.0, "metro_p50": 33213.8, "metro_p75": 34028.0, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 41106.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Administrative Assistant/Office Clerk", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 25760.0, "metro_p50": 34480.0, "metro_p75": 38526.0, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 43680.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "HVAC Technician", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 55863.0, "metro_p50": 64596.8, "metro_p75": 67071.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 70720.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "Registered Nurse", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 84364.0, "metro_p50": 98578.0, "metro_p75": 101105.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 102581.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"role": "Software Engineer", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 119258.0, "metro_p50": 143242.0, "metro_p75": 147250.0, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 153652.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Data Engineer", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 128500.0, "metro_p50": 128500.0, "metro_p75": 144562.0, "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": 40477.0, "metro_p50": 55916.0, "metro_p75": 56729.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 72182.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "Financial Analyst", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 67281.0, "metro_p50": 88088.0, "metro_p75": 96533.5, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "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": 57383.75, "metro_p50": 76053.6, "metro_p75": 80000.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 75000.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"role": "Marketing Specialist", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 40487.0, "metro_p50": 43263.0, "metro_p75": 50760.0, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 62354.4, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "Operations Manager", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 65000.0, "metro_p50": 81400.0, "metro_p75": 91730.25, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 85216.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Elementary/Secondary School Teacher", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 26000.0, "metro_p50": 46243.0, "metro_p75": 52957.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 56731.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"role": "Account Manager", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 63143.0, "metro_p50": 90076.4, "metro_p75": 105350.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 92749.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"role": "Warehouse Manager", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 54937.0, "metro_p50": 80500.0, "metro_p75": 99000.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 75000.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Business Analyst", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 80509.0, "metro_p50": 88394.6, "metro_p75": 96194.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 98279.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}], "industry_snapshot": [{"sector": "Construction", "median_pay": 48942.0, "pay_trend_direction": "up", "pay_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "postings_trend_direction": "up", "postings_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"sector": "Manufacturing", "median_pay": 71953.0, "pay_trend_direction": "up", "pay_trend_magnitude": "significant", "postings_trend_direction": "up", "postings_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"sector": "Retail Trade", "median_pay": 35449.0, "pay_trend_direction": "up", "pay_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "postings_trend_direction": "up", "postings_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"sector": "Transportation, Warehousing & Utilities", "median_pay": 65550.0, "pay_trend_direction": "stable", "pay_trend_magnitude": "stable", "postings_trend_direction": "up", "postings_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"sector": "Information", "median_pay": 57200.0, "pay_trend_direction": "up", "pay_trend_magnitude": "significant", "postings_trend_direction": "up", "postings_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"sector": "Financial Activities", "median_pay": 52233.0, "pay_trend_direction": "stable", "pay_trend_magnitude": "stable", "postings_trend_direction": "up", "postings_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"sector": "Professional & Business Services", "median_pay": 67610.0, "pay_trend_direction": "up", "pay_trend_magnitude": "significant", "postings_trend_direction": "up", "postings_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"sector": "Education & Health Services", "median_pay": 80080.0, "pay_trend_direction": "up", "pay_trend_magnitude": "significant", "postings_trend_direction": "up", "postings_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"sector": "Leisure & Hospitality", "median_pay": 28069.0, "pay_trend_direction": "stable", "pay_trend_magnitude": "stable", "postings_trend_direction": "up", "postings_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"sector": "Government", "median_pay": 69235.0, "pay_trend_direction": "up", "pay_trend_magnitude": "significant", "postings_trend_direction": "up", "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": "macon-ga-msa/metro-job-market/2026-09.html", "pdf": "macon-ga-msa/metro-job-market/2026-09.pdf", "sources_html": "macon-ga-msa/metro-job-market/2026-09.sources.html"}, "published_at": "2026-10-09T14:32:36.291478+00:00", "report_html_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/macon-ga-msa/metro-job-market/2026-09.html", "report_pdf_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/macon-ga-msa/metro-job-market/2026-09.pdf"}