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Labor Market Pulse
Tyler, TX Metro Edition
Focus: FINANCE
Tyler Controller pay surges while FP&A pay quietly slips.
3.9%
Tyler MSA unemployment
vs 4.4% Texas, 4.1% national
$104,040
Controller advertised pay (metro)
up significantly; national flat at $112,500
$121,841
FP&A Manager advertised pay (metro)
down moderately vs stable $127,341 national
Flat
Texas private payroll growth (Aug)
despite 5,600 total nonfarm jobs added statewide
This Month's Takeaways
Controller pay is repricing locally while national rates sit still.
Metro Controller advertised pay rose significantly to a median of $104,040, narrowing the gap with the $112,500 national figure even as national Controller pay held flat. That convergence points to genuine local scarcity for close-cycle leadership rather than a broader market-wide adjustment.
FP&A Manager pay is falling here just as demand for the role rises nationally.
Metro FP&A Manager pay dropped moderately to $121,841 while national F&A leaders report paying premiums of up to 56% for AI-adjusted forecasting skills. A widening skills gap between what local postings offer and what forecasting-heavy roles now command elsewhere may make replacement hiring harder than current budgets assume.
Tax Specialist pay looks disconnected from national direction.
Metro Tax Specialist advertised pay fell significantly to $33,732, roughly half the $66,725 national median, which is itself climbing significantly. Consider evaluating whether this reflects a genuinely thinner local candidate pool being underpriced, or a role definition mismatch against national postings skewing toward specialized tax technology skills.
Tight metro unemployment is colliding with flat state payroll growth.
Tyler's 3.9% unemployment sits below both state and national rates, but Texas private payrolls were essentially flat in August despite record headline job counts. Headcount planning built on the assumption that Texas's growth story guarantees local hiring ease may not hold in a metro this close to full employment.
Local Labor Conditions
Tyler MSA unemployment held near 3.9% in the latest reading, well below both the Texas rate of 4.4% and the national rate of 4.1%, reflecting a metro economy anchored by healthcare, education, and distribution employers adding roughly 100 jobs a month. That tightness is layering onto statewide finance-specific pressure — Texas private payrolls were flat in August even as headline job counts hit records, signaling that available finance and accounting talent locally is scarcer than the topline growth numbers suggest.
Leadership & Talent Implications
Controller pay in the Tyler metro moved up significantly this month against a national median that held stable, a divergence that likely reflects local competition for close-cycle and audit-readiness talent rather than a broad regional repricing. FP&A Manager advertised pay fell moderately even as national F&A hiring managers report offering above-range salaries 69% of the time, suggesting Tyler employers may be under-pricing a role tied directly to forecasting and headcount planning capability. Current conditions suggest reviewing whether Controller and FP&A compensation bands reflect this local divergence before the next budget cycle locks in assumptions built on stale benchmarks.
