{"schema_version": 1, "id": "st-george-ut-msa/finance/2026-10", "product": "Labor Market Pulse", "metro": {"geography_id": 362, "label": "St. George, UT MSA", "slug": "st-george-ut-msa"}, "focus_area": {"key": "finance", "slug": "finance", "label": "Finance"}, "period": "2026-10", "public_after": "2026-10-01", "frozen_at": "2026-11-03T05:55:14.661772+00:00", "headline": "St. George finance pay splits: oversight roles rise, analysts retreat.", "headline_summary": "Metro Financial Analyst pay fell 10.3% year-over-year to $87,510 even as Controller pay climbed to $112,138, against a county unemployment rate of 3.5% that keeps finance talent scarce.", "key_indicators": [{"label": "Washington County unemployment", "value": "3.5%", "context": "vs 4.1% national rate, August 2026"}, {"label": "Financial Analyst advertised pay (metro)", "value": "$87,510", "context": "down 10.3% YoY vs stable national $94,646"}, {"label": "CFO turnover rate (national)", "value": "18.3%", "context": "Highest since pandemic, Crist|Kolder 2026"}, {"label": "County employment growth", "value": "4.0% YoY", "context": "vs 1.4% statewide, through August 2026"}], "takeaways": [{"headline": "Financial Analyst pay is sliding locally while demand for oversight roles climbs.", "body": "Metro Financial Analyst advertised pay dropped 10.3% year-over-year to $87,510, a sharp divergence from the stable national figure of $94,646, while Controller ($112,138) and FP&A Manager ($123,421) postings both moved up. Finance leaders rebuilding analyst pipelines should benchmark against this local softening instead of national trend lines."}, {"headline": "Washington County's tight labor market raises the cost of a finance vacancy.", "body": "County unemployment held at 3.5% with employment up 4.0% year-over-year, well ahead of the 4.2% national rate, meaning open finance seats likely sit open longer. Combined with 18.3% national CFO turnover, succession gaps in controller and FP&A roles carry more operational risk here than in looser metros."}, {"headline": "Tax Specialist pay is outrunning its national counterpart.", "body": "Metro Tax Specialist advertised pay of $70,720 now exceeds the national median of $69,556, a reversal worth noting given most metro finance roles trail national figures. Compliance-adjacent hiring appears to be a local priority as audit and reporting complexity grows alongside county business formation."}, {"headline": "Contract staffing trend may be harder to execute in a thin local market.", "body": "70% of finance leaders nationally are increasing contract talent use to manage fixed costs, but Washington County's tight labor supply and limited financial-services bench may constrain access to interim controllers or analysts locally. Organizations should evaluate whether remote or regional contract arrangements are necessary to make this strategy work here."}], "local_conditions": "Washington County's finance-relevant labor pool remains tight, with county unemployment at 3.5% in August and employment up 4.0% year-over-year, keeping competition for accounting and FP&A talent elevated against a backdrop of statewide financial activities growth of just 2,000 jobs through March. Metro Financial Analyst advertised pay has fallen 10.3% year-over-year to $87,510 even as Controller and FP&A Manager postings climb, suggesting employers are recalibrating which finance functions command premium pay instead of lifting compensation broadly.", "implications": "Divergent local pay signals \u2014 Controller and Tax Specialist roles rising while Financial Analyst pay retreats sharply \u2014 indicate finance leaders are prioritizing budget ownership and compliance expertise above generalist analytical support, a shift worth reflecting in headcount mix for 2027 planning cycles. National CFO turnover at 18.3% and 70% of finance leaders expanding contract talent use compound the risk that St. George's thin labor pool (3.5% unemployment) leaves close and audit cycles exposed during a leadership transition. Consider reviewing whether current FP&A and controller succession plans account for a St. George candidate market tighter than national averages.", "looking_ahead": [{"category": "Worth watching", "body": "Financial Analyst advertised pay has fallen sharply locally; watch whether this reflects softer demand for the role or a shift toward hiring at lower experience tiers. Either explanation changes how finance leaders should calibrate new offers over the next quarter."}, {"category": "Emerging pressure point", "body": "National CFO turnover at 18.3% combined with a tight 3.5% county unemployment rate raises the odds that a departure at the controller or FP&A manager level in St. George takes longer to backfill. Finance leaders should monitor internal succession readiness now, well ahead of the point of departure."}, {"category": "Early indicator", "body": "Financial activities employment grew modestly statewide (2,000 jobs through March) against Washington County's stronger 4.0% overall employment growth \u2014 watch whether county-level finance hiring data, when available, confirms the metro is outpacing the state average."}, {"category": "Potential inflection point", "body": "Utah's employment cost index pressure and the national 3.4% compensation cost rise, with real compensation actually declining 0.4% after inflation, may limit how much room exists for further advertised pay increases in controller and FP&A roles even amid tight local supply."}], "roles": [{"role": "Controller", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 83307.0, "metro_p50": 112137.8, "metro_p75": 120000.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 115420.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "Senior Accountant", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 73384.0, "metro_p50": 82000.0, "metro_p75": 82707.0, "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": 72887.0, "metro_p50": 87509.6, "metro_p75": 101700.0, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 94646.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Billing Specialist", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 36400.0, "metro_p50": 40112.0, "metro_p75": 43763.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 49000.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Tax Specialist", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 48153.5, "metro_p50": 70720.0, "metro_p75": 83388.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 69556.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"role": "Credit Analyst", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 52500.0, "metro_p50": 69010.0, "metro_p75": 72023.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 71397.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "FP&A Manager", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 120284.5, "metro_p50": 123421.0, "metro_p75": 124210.5, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 130000.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}], "industry_snapshot": [], "citations": [{"source_name": "Utah Department of Workforce Services", "source_url": null, "statement": "Washington County unemployment and employment growth figures"}, {"source_name": "Crist|Kolder Associates", "source_url": null, "statement": "CFO turnover rate of 18.3% in 2026"}, {"source_name": "AFP FP&A Forum", "source_url": null, "statement": "70% of finance leaders increasing contract talent use"}, {"source_name": "Bureau of Labor Statistics", "source_url": "https://www.bls.gov", "statement": "National unemployment rate of 4.1%"}, {"source_name": "Bureau of Labor Statistics", "source_url": "https://www.bls.gov", "statement": "Employment cost index rose 3.4%, real compensation declined 0.4%"}, {"source_name": "Utah Department of Workforce Services", "source_url": null, "statement": "Financial activities sector added 2,000 jobs statewide"}], "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": "st-george-ut-msa/finance/2026-10.html", "pdf": "st-george-ut-msa/finance/2026-10.pdf"}, "published_at": "2026-11-03T08:30:57.118784+00:00", "report_html_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/st-george-ut-msa/finance/2026-10.html", "report_pdf_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/st-george-ut-msa/finance/2026-10.pdf"}