Milwaukee employers reported 857,500 payroll jobs in September 2026, an estimated 1,600 more than in September 2025.
Payroll jobs857,500September 2026 · Jobs at workplaces
Annual jobs change+1,600Compared with September 2025
Annual payroll growth+0.2%Compared with September 2025
Unemployment rate3.2%September 2026 · 0.1 percentage points higher than September 2025
BLS total nonfarm payroll · Not seasonally adjusted. Payroll counts jobs at workplaces; unemployment measures residents. These are different measures.
BLS does not mark this annual payroll change statistically significant at 90% confidence. This does not establish a statistically significant difference between metros.
Historical detail below: Census QWI 2025 Q3 · BLS OEWS May 2025 occupation estimates. Each source keeps its own date and coverage.
Historical workforce detail · Census QWI 2025 Q3
Hiring, worker flows and pay in Milwaukee
Census workforce data arrive with a publication lag. These findings compare 2025 Q3 with 2024 Q3 and do not describe later conditions. Open "How this was calculated" for the arithmetic.
Census recorded 876,877 jobs in the Milwaukee metro at the start of 2025 Q3, down 0.6% from the same quarter a year earlier. This is historical workforce detail from the latest complete Census quarter saved for this metro. QWI covers private employers and state and local government; federal jobs are excluded. Its job counts differ from monthly BLS payroll coverage.
Jobs, start of quarter876,877-0.6% vs. 2024 Q3
Hires in the quarter135,92415.5 per 100 jobs · -0.7% vs. 2024 Q3
Avg. monthly earnings$5,766Stable workers, nominal · +2.9% vs. 2024 Q3
Occupations with local data566BLS OEWS May 2025
JobsCensus QWI · 2024 Q3 to 2025 Q3
-0.6%
Jobs fell 0.6% from 2024 Q3 to 2025 Q3
Beginning-of-quarter employment was 876,877 in 2025 Q3, against 882,036 in 2024 Q3, a change of -5,159 jobs. That change was larger than in 6 of the 49 other covered metros with matching data for the same quarters.
How this was calculated
(876,877 - 882,036) / 882,036 = -0.6%. Same quarter, one year apart; all industries, all ownership, not seasonally adjusted.
Finance and insurance had the largest job decline of any major industry
Finance and insurance lost 3,673 jobs (-8.2%) between 2024 Q3 and 2025 Q3, and holds 4.7% of metro jobs. 7 of 15 industries with at least 2% of metro jobs grew. One year-over-year comparison is not a trend.
How this was calculated
41,249 - 44,922 = -3673 jobs; ranked by absolute change among sectors with at least 2% of 2025 Q3 employment and published values in both quarters.
53% of comparable occupations have local medians above the U.S. median
Of 553 occupations with a published annual median both here and nationally, 294 have a higher local median, 259 a lower one and 0 the same. The largest such occupation, home health and personal care aides (30,090 jobs), has a median of $37,020 versus $35,800 nationally. Annual figures are published annualized OEWS wage estimates, not actual annual take-home pay; pay is nominal and not adjusted for cost of living.
How this was calculated
Above: 294/553 = 53.2%; below: 259/553 = 46.8%; equal: 0/553. Occupations with both metro and national annual medians published (top-coded or suppressed values excluded), OEWS May 2025.
Manufacturing is a larger part of the job base than in most covered metros
12.7% of jobs here are in manufacturing, compared with a median of 6.9% across 49 other covered metros in 2025 Q3, about 1.8 times the typical share.
How this was calculated
Sector employment / all-industry employment for 2025 Q3; compared with the median share of the same sector in the other covered metros with the same quarter. Only sectors with at least 3% of local jobs are considered.
15.5 hires per 100 jobs in 2025 Q3, at or below the comparison median
Employers recorded 135,924 hires during 2025 Q3 against 876,877 jobs at the start of the quarter. The median across 49 other covered metros was 15.8. This is a flow ratio, not a chance of being hired, and hires are not job openings.
Jobs changed -0.6% and hires -0.7% between the same quarter one year apart. During 2025 Q3 employers recorded 135,924 hires and 144,705 separations, a difference of -8,781. That difference is a flow measure and is not the same as the official change in employment.
Census QWI beginning-of-quarter employment, all industries, private employers and state and local government; federal jobs excluded. Not seasonally adjusted. The axis is truncated: bars start above zero to show change. Compare the same quarter across years because seasonal patterns repeat. The highlighted bar is 2025 Q3.Show as a table
Quarter
Employment
Hires
Separations
2023 Q1
846,628
124,657
123,002
2023 Q2
849,343
169,914
144,579
2023 Q3
874,056
145,254
154,948
2023 Q4
864,929
131,045
137,660
2024 Q1
857,395
116,287
116,383
2024 Q2
857,255
149,948
128,118
2024 Q3
882,036
136,892
147,080
2024 Q4
868,768
126,770
131,647
2025 Q1
864,213
105,675
109,579
2025 Q2
860,595
141,554
125,155
2025 Q3
876,877
135,924
144,705
Careers · BLS OEWS May 2025
Explore careers in Milwaukee
566 detailed occupations with local estimates, 555 with a published local median wage. Figures describe one survey reference period, not growth, openings or forecasts.
Try:
Showing 1 to 25 of 566 matching occupations. Local jobs are OEWS employment estimates; medians are for all workers in the occupation in this metro, compared with the U.S. median for the same occupation and pay basis.
BLS OEWS May 2025, Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI metro area (CBSA 33340). Unknown values sort last.
Occupation
Local jobs
Annual median
Hourly median
vs. U.S. median
National context
Home health and personal care aides31-1120 · Healthcare support
Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates for the Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI metro area (CBSA 33340), one survey reference period. They show levels, not growth, openings or forecasts.
Largest occupations by local jobs: home health and personal care aides (30,090), registered nurses (22,400), laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand (19,810), retail salespersons (18,850), fast food and counter workers (17,490).
Medians are for all workers in the occupation in this metro. "vs. U.S." compares with the national median for the same occupation, same release and same pay basis. 553 occupations have published annual medians both here and nationally. 11 have no published local median.
Annual figures are published annualized OEWS wage estimates, not actual annual take-home pay. Pay is nominal and not adjusted for cost of living.
Some occupations are paid and published on an hourly or annual basis only; the other column then says so rather than showing a converted figure.
"Not released" means BLS did not publish that local estimate. 7 occupations have a median above the BLS reporting ceiling, shown as such rather than as a number. Nothing is filled in or treated as zero.
"U.S. profile" links open national data for the occupation, not Milwaukee figures.
Compare metros
How Milwaukee compares with similar metros
Monthly payroll comparison · September 2026
All payroll rows compare September 2026 with September 2025 from the same BLS release, not seasonally adjusted. These are the same suggested peers used in the quarterly profiles. Estimates do not establish statistically significant differences between metros.
Payroll measures jobs at workplaces. Unemployment rates measure residents and are shown only when a validated estimate matches the same month and metro.
Historical comparison · Census QWI 2025 Q3
Quarterly hiring, jobs and earnings
Every metro in this historical table uses 2025 Q3 and 2024 Q3, from one saved Census release. Monthly payroll comparisons above use a separate BLS source and are not combined with these measures.
Showing Milwaukee with Salt Lake City, Raleigh, Jacksonville. Default: the 3 covered metros closest in total employment (Salt Lake City, Raleigh, Jacksonville).
Choose metros (3 of 49 selected)
Census QWI, 2025 Q3 compared with 2024 Q3 for Milwaukee and selected metros.
Census QWI, 2025 Q3 compared with 2024 Q3 for every metro. Hires per 100 jobs is hires during the quarter divided by beginning-of-quarter employment, times 100: a flow ratio, not a chance of being hired. Earnings are average monthly earnings of stable workers, nominal, not adjusted for cost of living.
Suggested peers are the covered metros closest in total QWI employment (smallest ratio difference) for the same quarter. Differences of a few tenths of a point are within normal revision and should not be read as a ranking.
By industry · Census QWI 2025 Q3
Industries behind the numbers
Hires are a count of hires made during the quarter, not unique people or job openings. A large count reflects industry size and turnover.
Largest job gains, 2024 Q3 to 2025 Q3
Health care and social assistance+3,217 jobs+2.2%
Construction+1,180 jobs+3.0%
Administrative and support and waste management+545 jobs+1.0%
Largest job declines, 2024 Q3 to 2025 Q3
Finance and insurance-3,673 jobs-8.2%
Manufacturing-2,340 jobs-2.1%
Public administration-2,184 jobs-7.4%
Show all 20 industry sectors
Census QWI NAICS sectors, private employers and state and local government; federal jobs excluded. Not seasonally adjusted. Change compares 2025 Q3 with 2024 Q3, the same quarter a year earlier. Not published = not published for every state portion or no matching prior-year quarter. Sectors do not add exactly to the total.
Industry
Employment
Share of jobs
Employment change, 1 yr
Hires
Hires change, 1 yr
Avg. monthly earnings
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting
1,060
0.1%
-5.8%
307
+48.3%
$3,372
Mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction
633
0.1%
+1.4%
52
+116.7%
$6,976
Utilities
3,312
0.4%
+1.2%
124
-4.6%
$8,399
Construction
40,674
4.6%
+3.0%
5,531
+5.0%
$7,454
Manufacturing
111,519
12.7%
-2.1%
8,329
-5.3%
$6,588
Wholesale trade
42,838
4.9%
-2.1%
3,113
-7.4%
$8,034
Retail trade
81,783
9.3%
-0.2%
14,545
-4.4%
$3,400
Transportation and warehousing
31,129
3.5%
+0.9%
5,923
-1.7%
$4,810
Information
12,554
1.4%
-4.6%
853
-21.2%
$7,850
Finance and insurance
41,249
4.7%
-8.2%
2,078
-2.3%
$9,137
Real estate and rental and leasing
12,308
1.4%
-0.7%
1,461
+3.6%
$5,605
Professional, scientific, and technical services
50,543
5.8%
-1.3%
4,485
-11.9%
$8,838
Management of companies and enterprises
29,057
3.3%
+0.5%
2,091
-1.7%
$8,328
Administrative and support and waste management
54,378
6.2%
+1.0%
24,163
+13.4%
$4,181
Educational services
63,183
7.2%
+0.3%
10,083
+1.5%
$5,009
Health care and social assistance
149,559
17.1%
+2.2%
20,165
-0.6%
$5,448
Arts, entertainment, and recreation
26,373
3.0%
+1.6%
6,313
-1.4%
$4,618
Accommodation and food services
69,798
8.0%
-0.2%
20,558
-2.3%
$2,188
Other services (except public administration)
27,557
3.1%
-1.1%
4,143
-12.3%
$4,149
Public administration
27,370
3.1%
-7.4%
1,607
-31.1%
$5,544
Sources and limits
Where these numbers come from
Monthly BLS payroll estimates cover September 2026. Census workforce detail covers 2025 Q3, and the wage survey covers OEWS May 2025. Each source retains its own observation period, coverage and publication dates. None is a real-time measure.
BLS monthly metro estimates
Current Employment Statistics (CES) total nonfarm payroll employment. Jobs at workplaces, not unique people, job openings or forecasts. Compare the same month one year apart because these estimates are not seasonally adjusted.
Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS) measures unemployment among residents of the metro. Its rate is shown separately from workplace payroll employment.
U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Quarterly Workforce Indicators. Jobs, hires, separations and earnings by industry for private employers and state and local government. Federal jobs are excluded.
Monthly payroll estimates measure nonfarm jobs at workplaces, not hiring events, job openings or resident employment. Annual changes are estimates, may be revised and do not establish acceleration or statistically significant differences between metros.
Hires are not job openings and not your odds of being hired. We make no claim about layoffs, AI or other causes behind any change.
Census QWI covers private employers and state and local government; federal jobs are excluded. Its data typically run about three quarters behind publication. This report uses the latest complete saved quarter, 2025 Q3; any newer partial measures are not substituted for the complete quarterly package.
QWI earnings are averages for workers who held the same job all quarter, before taxes, in nominal dollars. They are not salary offers and are not adjusted for cost of living.
BLS OEWS figures (OEWS May 2025) describe one survey reference period. They show levels, not growth, and are a different period from the QWI quarter, so the two are never combined into one measure.
BLS does not release some local estimates; they appear as "Not released", and wages above its reporting ceiling appear as such rather than as a number. None is filled in or treated as zero.
Both sources use the metro boundary shown above. Census labels follow the 2023 metro definitions.
Single-quarter swings in an industry can reflect employer reclassification or reporting changes. Compare several quarters before drawing conclusions.