{"schema_version": 1, "id": "yakima-wa-msa/information-technology/2026-10", "product": "Labor Market Pulse", "metro": {"geography_id": 450, "label": "Yakima, WA MSA", "slug": "yakima-wa-msa"}, "focus_area": {"key": "information_technology", "slug": "information-technology", "label": "Information Technology"}, "period": "2026-10", "public_after": "2026-10-01", "frozen_at": "2026-11-03T03:39:43.425827+00:00", "headline": "Yakima tech pay splits sharply between scarce skills and the rest.", "headline_summary": "Yakima's Software Engineer advertised pay hit $169,445 against a national $154,403, while Network Engineer pay fell to $90,707 even as the national figure climbed to $115,757.", "key_indicators": [{"label": "Yakima County unemployment rate", "value": "4.0%", "context": "Down from 5.5% in August; seasonal harvest effect"}, {"label": "WA technology WARN filings (YTD)", "value": "12,336 workers", "context": "43 notices statewide, King County two-thirds of 2026 total"}, {"label": "Yakima avg. weekly wage", "value": "$1,041", "context": "Lowest among WA's large counties, Q1 2026"}, {"label": "Software Engineer advertised pay, metro vs. national", "value": "$169,445 vs. $154,403", "context": "Metro up moderate; national stable"}], "takeaways": [{"headline": "Network Engineer pay is falling locally while rising nationally.", "body": "Metro Network Engineer advertised pay dropped to $90,707, a moderate decline, even as the national median climbed to $115,757. Widening gap may reflect softer local infrastructure hiring demand or a shrinking pool of advertisers competing for this role \u2014 worth confirming before assuming it reflects falling need for the skill itself."}, {"headline": "Software Engineer compensation in Yakima now outpaces the nation.", "body": "Metro median of $169,445 sits well above the $154,403 national figure, an unusual inversion for a non-metro market and one that suggests a small number of advertisers are driving the median higher. Treat this figure cautiously when benchmarking volume hiring."}, {"headline": "Cybersecurity and project management roles show steady upward pressure.", "body": "Cybersecurity Analyst ($111,842, up moderate) and IT Project Manager ($119,600, up moderate) both outpace their national medians, tracking the statewide trend toward premium pricing for specialized and governance-adjacent skills. Current conditions suggest these roles deserve more frequent benchmarking cycles than stable-trend roles like Help Desk or Systems Administrator."}, {"headline": "Statewide tech layoffs may be quietly expanding the local candidate pool.", "body": "Washington's 12,336 technology WARN-notice workers year-to-date, concentrated in King County, represent a displaced talent pool that could migrate toward lower-cost metros like Yakima if remote arrangements hold. Two-thirds of King County's 2026 WARN volume came from tech \u2014 a signal worth monitoring for inbound candidate flow."}], "local_conditions": "Yakima County's unemployment rate fell sharply to 4.0% in September from 5.5% in August, tracking the seasonal harvest-driven employment swing typical of an agriculture-anchored metro economy, while Washington's 43 technology-sector WARN filings year-to-date affecting 12,336 workers signal that statewide tech contraction has reached this labor pool. Average weekly wages in Yakima County remain the lowest among Washington's large counties at $1,041, even as local Software Engineer advertised pay rose to a metro median of $169,445 \u2014 a divergence that points to a bifurcated local tech labor market, with gains concentrated in scarce specialized skills.", "implications": "Metro Software Engineer pay running above the national median ($169,445 vs. $154,403) alongside a declining Network Engineer rate ($90,707, down moderate) suggests employers are concentrating compensation dollars on scarce, specialized roles while infrastructure and support talent face softer demand \u2014 consistent with the statewide pattern of premium pricing for cybersecurity, data, and cloud specialization against hiring freezes for generalist roles. Washington's technology WARN activity (12,336 workers year-to-date) and Oracle's 359-worker Seattle-area filing widen the pool of displaced infrastructure and support talent that smaller Yakima-area employers may be able to access at lower cost than competing directly for scarce specialized skill sets. Consider reviewing whether current infrastructure and support headcount plans could absorb displaced Seattle-market talent through remote or hybrid arrangements before competing head-on for scarce specialized hires at premium local rates.", "looking_ahead": [{"category": "Early indicator", "body": "Watch whether Yakima County's unemployment rate reverts upward as harvest season winds down into November, which would reframe September's improvement as seasonal rather than structural labor tightening."}, {"category": "Emerging pressure point", "body": "Washington's technology WARN filings, led by Oracle's 359-worker Seattle notice, may push displaced infrastructure and security talent into secondary markets over the next two months \u2014 track whether advertised pay for Systems Administrator or Network Engineer roles softens further as supply increases."}, {"category": "Worth watching", "body": "Software Engineer advertised pay moving up against a stable national trend could reflect a handful of high-paying postings; confirm with additional postings data before adjusting compensation ranges for volume hiring."}, {"category": "Potential inflection point", "body": "National AI-related job postings now exceed 7.3% of all postings, well above the 2022 peak \u2014 if this reaches Yakima-area employers, expect Data Scientist and Cybersecurity Analyst advertised pay, already elevated locally, to climb further."}], "roles": [{"role": "Data Scientist", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 121651.0, "metro_p50": 158953.0, "metro_p75": 174400.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 145881.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Systems Administrator", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 82046.0, "metro_p50": 101879.0, "metro_p75": 112192.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 102503.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "Network Engineer", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 85079.0, "metro_p50": 90707.0, "metro_p75": 108267.0, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 115757.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "Software Engineer", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 129166.0, "metro_p50": 169445.0, "metro_p75": 187138.5, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 154403.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Help Desk/IT Support Specialist", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 46800.0, "metro_p50": 58487.0, "metro_p75": 66837.25, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 53129.0, "national_trend_direction": "down", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "Cybersecurity Analyst", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 91149.0, "metro_p50": 111842.0, "metro_p75": 129500.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 107327.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "IT Project Manager", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 96911.0, "metro_p50": 119600.0, "metro_p75": 132214.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 118149.8, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}], "industry_snapshot": [], "citations": [{"source_name": "Washington Employment Security Department", "source_url": null, "statement": "Yakima County unemployment fell from 5.5% to 4.0% in September 2026"}, {"source_name": "U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics", "source_url": null, "statement": "Yakima County average weekly wage of $1,041, lowest among large WA counties"}, {"source_name": "Washington WARN Act Tracker", "source_url": null, "statement": "Washington technology sector WARN filings total 12,336 workers across 43 notices YTD"}, {"source_name": "Washington Employment Security Department", "source_url": null, "statement": "Oracle WARN notice covering 359 workers across Seattle facilities"}, {"source_name": "Indeed Hiring Lab", "source_url": null, "statement": "AI-related job postings reached 7.3% of all postings, above 2022 peak of 3.3%"}, {"source_name": "Washington WARN Act Tracker", "source_url": null, "statement": "King County WARN layoffs total 6,912 workers YTD, two-thirds from tech"}], "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": "yakima-wa-msa/information-technology/2026-10.html", "pdf": "yakima-wa-msa/information-technology/2026-10.pdf"}, "published_at": "2026-11-03T08:32:42.792142+00:00", "report_html_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/yakima-wa-msa/information-technology/2026-10.html", "report_pdf_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/yakima-wa-msa/information-technology/2026-10.pdf"}