{"schema_version": 1, "id": "myrtle-beach-conway-north-myrtle-beach-sc-msa/human-resources/2026-10", "product": "Labor Market Pulse", "metro": {"geography_id": 358, "label": "Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach, SC MSA", "slug": "myrtle-beach-conway-north-myrtle-beach-sc-msa"}, "focus_area": {"key": "human_resources", "slug": "human-resources", "label": "Human Resources"}, "period": "2026-10", "public_after": "2026-10-01", "frozen_at": "2026-11-03T02:34:06.607002+00:00", "headline": "Myrtle Beach jobs grow 3.6% while county wages lag the state.", "headline_summary": "Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach posted 3.6% year-over-year employment growth, yet Horry County's $974 average weekly wage remains the lowest among South Carolina's major counties and unemployment sits at 4.8%, above the state's 4.0% rate.", "key_indicators": [{"label": "Metro employment growth", "value": "3.6% YoY", "context": "Among strongest smaller-metro gains nationally"}, {"label": "Horry County unemployment", "value": "4.8%", "context": "vs 4.0% SC, 3.2% Charleston metro"}, {"label": "Horry County avg weekly wage", "value": "$974", "context": "Lowest among SC's largest counties, Q1 2026"}, {"label": "SC statewide unemployment", "value": "4.0%", "context": "Seventh straight monthly decline"}], "takeaways": [{"headline": "Job growth is outrunning wage growth in Horry County.", "body": "Employment rose 3.6% year-over-year while average weekly wages sit at $974 \u2014 the lowest among South Carolina's major counties. Growth without matching pay gains typically shows up later as elevated turnover, particularly in tourism and hospitality roles."}, {"headline": "County unemployment tells a different story than metro headlines.", "body": "Horry County's 4.8% unemployment rate in August runs well above the state's 4.0% and Charleston's 3.2%, suggesting labor supply may be less tight here than top-line metro growth figures imply. HR leaders should weigh local candidate availability separately from statewide tightness narratives."}, {"headline": "Compensation Analyst pay signals a local recalibration effort.", "body": "Metro median advertised pay for Compensation Analyst climbed to $101,431, edging past the national median of $100,798 and marking a significant increase. Employers appear to be investing in the analytical capacity needed to realign pay structures against the local wage-growth gap."}, {"headline": "HR Business Partner pay is diverging sharply from national trend.", "body": "Metro median advertised pay of $75,448 trails the national median of $83,900 by roughly 10%, even with a significant local increase this month. That gap may complicate recruiting HRBPs from outside the region or retaining those with multi-market mobility."}], "local_conditions": "Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach employment grew 3.6% year-over-year in September, outpacing both South Carolina and national job growth and marking it among the strongest-performing smaller metros in the country, even as Horry County unemployment sits at 4.8% \u2014 above the state's 4.0% rate and well above Charleston's 3.2%. Tourism, healthcare, retail trade and construction continue to anchor hiring demand, but average weekly wages in Horry County remain the lowest among South Carolina's largest counties at $974, creating a structural tension between employment growth and wage competitiveness.", "implications": "Rapid job growth paired with below-average wages and elevated county unemployment suggests Myrtle Beach employers are adding headcount in a market where pay has not kept pace with demand, raising retention risk as workers gain more local options without needing to leave the metro. Compensation Analyst advertised pay rose to a metro median of $101,431 \u2014 above the national figure \u2014 indicating employers are investing in the expertise needed to recalibrate pay structures amid this mismatch. Consider reviewing how advertised pay for frontline and hospitality-adjacent roles compares to the Horry County wage base, since continued growth without wage correction may widen turnover exposure heading into 2026 peak season planning.", "looking_ahead": [{"category": "Emerging pressure point", "body": "Horry County's 4.8% unemployment rate, well above the state average, bears watching as a signal of underlying labor slack that could ease hiring difficulty in frontline and hospitality roles even as headline job growth stays strong."}, {"category": "Worth watching", "body": "Average weekly wages of $974 in Horry County remain the lowest among South Carolina's largest counties; any acceleration in local wage growth over the next two reporting cycles would signal employers responding to retention risk ahead of 2026 peak tourism season."}, {"category": "Early indicator", "body": "Statewide WARN activity (51 notices, 7,206 employees through October) has concentrated in manufacturing, food & hospitality and transportation \u2014 sectors with meaningful Myrtle Beach presence. Monitor whether any filings extend into the Grand Strand labor pool."}, {"category": "Potential inflection point", "body": "South Carolina's UI tax rate cuts averaging 34.7% across mid-range classes free up employer budget capacity. Watch whether Myrtle Beach employers redirect savings toward wage adjustments or absorb them as margin relief."}], "roles": [{"role": "Compensation Analyst", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 67168.25, "metro_p50": 101430.6, "metro_p75": 110389.5, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 100798.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "HR Business Partner", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 53517.0, "metro_p50": 75448.0, "metro_p75": 77220.25, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 83900.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "Benefits Manager", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 70350.0, "metro_p50": 105694.8, "metro_p75": 121500.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 118618.2, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "HRIS Analyst", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 81341.25, "metro_p50": 95758.0, "metro_p75": 104375.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 95000.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "HR Coordinator", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 38220.0, "metro_p50": 38963.2, "metro_p75": 41042.25, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 50460.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "Recruiter", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 35680.0, "metro_p50": 55455.0, "metro_p75": 62881.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 67234.2, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Payroll Specialist", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 46904.0, "metro_p50": 55000.0, "metro_p75": 65000.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 61103.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}], "industry_snapshot": [], "citations": [{"source_name": "Bureau of Labor Statistics / Financial Channel", "source_url": null, "statement": "Myrtle Beach metro employment grew 3.6% year-over-year in September 2026"}, {"source_name": "SC Department of Employment & Workforce", "source_url": null, "statement": "Horry County unemployment rate of 4.8% in August 2026"}, {"source_name": "Bureau of Labor Statistics, County Employment and Wages", "source_url": null, "statement": "Horry County average weekly wages of $974 in Q1 2026, lowest among SC's largest counties"}, {"source_name": "SC Department of Employment & Workforce", "source_url": null, "statement": "South Carolina statewide unemployment rate fell to 4.0% in September 2026"}, {"source_name": "SC Department of Employment & Workforce / WARN tracker", "source_url": null, "statement": "South Carolina had 51 WARN notices affecting 7,206 employees through October 2026"}, {"source_name": "SC Department of Employment & Workforce", "source_url": null, "statement": "SC unemployment insurance tax rate classes 2-19 saw 34.7% average cuts from 2025"}], "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": "November 2026", "files": {"html": "myrtle-beach-conway-north-myrtle-beach-sc-msa/human-resources/2026-10.html", "pdf": "myrtle-beach-conway-north-myrtle-beach-sc-msa/human-resources/2026-10.pdf"}, "published_at": "2026-11-03T08:26:46.346623+00:00", "report_html_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/myrtle-beach-conway-north-myrtle-beach-sc-msa/human-resources/2026-10.html", "report_pdf_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/myrtle-beach-conway-north-myrtle-beach-sc-msa/human-resources/2026-10.pdf"}