{"schema_version": 1, "id": "oshkosh-neenah-wi-msa/life-sciences/2026-10", "product": "Labor Market Pulse", "metro": {"geography_id": 383, "label": "Oshkosh-Neenah, WI MSA", "slug": "oshkosh-neenah-wi-msa"}, "focus_area": {"key": "life_sciences", "slug": "life-sciences", "label": "Life Sciences"}, "period": "2026-10", "public_after": "2026-10-01", "frozen_at": "2026-11-03T04:34:15.528431+00:00", "headline": "Oshkosh regulatory and data roles pull away from national pay trends.", "headline_summary": "Regulatory Affairs Specialist pay rose to $108,813 locally while falling to $103,780 nationally, and Clinical Data Manager pay hit $142,249 against a stable $123,653 national figure.", "key_indicators": [{"label": "Winnebago County unemployment", "value": "3.3%", "context": "vs 4.2% national rate, August 2026"}, {"label": "County employment growth", "value": "-0.9%", "context": "Year-over-year through Q1 2026"}, {"label": "Wisconsin biohealth wage premium", "value": "$116,452", "context": "76% above statewide all-industry average"}, {"label": "Biopharma active recruiting (national)", "value": "64%", "context": "41% expect more open roles in 2026"}], "takeaways": [{"headline": "Clinical Data Manager pay has decoupled from the national market.", "body": "Metro median of $142,249 sits roughly 15% above the $123,653 national figure, which is itself stable. Localized scarcity appears to be driving this premium \u2014 a signal to benchmark this role against local data."}, {"headline": "Biostatistician pay is falling locally while holding steady nationally.", "body": "Metro median dropped to $91,787, a significant decline, against a stable $131,958 national figure \u2014 a gap wide enough to suggest local employers are either downgrading role scope or facing an unusually thin, lower-cost applicant pool. Either explanation warrants a closer look before setting new offers."}, {"headline": "Regulatory Affairs pay is rising locally against a national pullback.", "body": "Metro median climbed to $108,813 while the national figure fell to $103,780, reversing the usual pattern of metro markets trailing national trends. Local employers may be absorbing policy-driven demand \u2014 EUDAMED and EU AI Act compliance needs \u2014 faster than the broader market has priced in."}, {"headline": "Tight labor supply is colliding with sector-specific hiring confidence.", "body": "County employment fell 0.9% year-over-year even as 64% of biopharma organizations nationally report active recruiting and 41% expect more open roles in 2026. Local employers competing for the same shrinking talent pool should expect longer time-to-fill on specialized scientific and regulatory positions."}], "local_conditions": "Winnebago County unemployment sat at 3.3% in August, a full point below the national rate of 4.2%, even as county employment declined 0.9% year-over-year through Q1 2026 \u2014 a sign that fewer job seekers are holding the local rate down. Statewide biohealth employment grew 12.9% since 2021, nearly double the national pace, giving Oshkosh-area life sciences employers a sector tailwind even as broader Wisconsin payrolls have yet to reclaim their November 2024 peak.", "implications": "Advertised pay for Clinical Data Manager ($142,249 metro median, well above the $123,653 national figure) and Regulatory Affairs Specialist ($108,813 versus a declining $103,780 nationally) suggests Oshkosh-area employers are bidding up compensation for credential-heavy roles even as general labor supply stays flat to shrinking. Build-vs-outsource decisions deserve fresh scrutiny: national CRA and CMC bottlenecks plus a 23.2% lab/R&D vacancy rate across top U.S. markets make local retention of experienced regulatory and clinical staff more cost-effective than replacing them through a CDMO transition. Consider reviewing retention premiums for regulatory affairs and clinical data roles against the metro's upward pay trajectory before next budget cycle.", "looking_ahead": [{"category": "Early indicator", "body": "Watch whether Winnebago County's declining employment base (-0.9% year-over-year) begins pulling talent from adjacent sectors into life sciences roles, particularly as Amcor and Alliance Laundry Systems continue active recruiting through fall job fairs."}, {"category": "Emerging pressure point", "body": "Biostatistician pay softness locally, against national stability, may widen further if remote-eligible roles pull Oshkosh-based talent toward higher-paying national employers. Track whether local postings shift toward remote or hybrid terms to compete."}, {"category": "Potential inflection point", "body": "National CRA headcount plans remain flat to modest growth through 2026 despite a 1.9% national quit rate. Local employers should watch whether this translates into longer retention windows or renewed competition once hiring freezes thaw."}, {"category": "Worth watching", "body": "Wisconsin's biohealth wage premium ($116,452 average, 76% above the statewide all-industry average) continues to support retention arguments, but statewide job totals remain below the November 2024 peak \u2014 a gap that could pressure budgets for new headcount requests."}], "roles": [{"role": "Research Scientist", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 89753.0, "metro_p50": 117106.8, "metro_p75": 119062.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 130339.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"role": "Clinical Research Associate", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 55000.0, "metro_p50": 88590.0, "metro_p75": 119191.5, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 90065.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"role": "Lab Technician", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 39534.0, "metro_p50": 47840.0, "metro_p75": 52000.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 47840.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Regulatory Affairs Specialist", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 86107.0, "metro_p50": 108813.0, "metro_p75": 108814.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 103779.6, "national_trend_direction": "down", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "Clinical Data Manager", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 99430.0, "metro_p50": 142248.6, "metro_p75": 154539.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 123653.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Biostatistician", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 77671.0, "metro_p50": 91787.0, "metro_p75": 124765.25, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 131958.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Validation Engineer", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 91500.0, "metro_p50": 109517.2, "metro_p75": 130000.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 106478.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}], "industry_snapshot": [], "citations": [{"source_name": "USAFacts/BLS", "source_url": null, "statement": "Winnebago County unemployment at 3.3% in August 2026"}, {"source_name": "BLS/State biohealth industry tracking", "source_url": null, "statement": "Wisconsin biohealth employment grew 12.9% from 2021-2025"}, {"source_name": "Industry labor market research", "source_url": null, "statement": "Lab/R&D vacancy reached 23.2% across top 13 U.S. life sciences markets"}, {"source_name": "Bureau of Labor Statistics", "source_url": null, "statement": "National quit rate at 1.9% amid active biopharma recruiting"}, {"source_name": "State biohealth industry report", "source_url": null, "statement": "Wisconsin biohealth average annual wage of $116,452, 76% above state average"}, {"source_name": "Biopharma industry survey", "source_url": null, "statement": "64% of biopharma organizations actively recruiting, 41% expect more open roles"}], "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": "oshkosh-neenah-wi-msa/life-sciences/2026-10.html", "pdf": "oshkosh-neenah-wi-msa/life-sciences/2026-10.pdf"}, "published_at": "2026-11-03T08:27:48.087176+00:00", "report_html_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/oshkosh-neenah-wi-msa/life-sciences/2026-10.html", "report_pdf_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/oshkosh-neenah-wi-msa/life-sciences/2026-10.pdf"}