Life sciences employers are widening their lens beyond the nation’s established biopharma hubs as labor dynamics reshape where companies choose to locate and grow. Cushman & Wakefield’s 2026 Life Sciences Labor Dynamics Across Key U.S. Markets report underscores that talent availability is now central to site selection, just as it has long underpinned innovation in the sector.
Report authors Sandy Romero, Head of Office & Alternatives, and Senior Research Analyst Maggie Tillotson told Connect CRE that traditional life sciences centers such as Boston-Cambridge, the San Francisco Bay Area, San Diego and Raleigh-Durham continue to lead the country in research and development and pharmaceutical manufacturing employment. They attribute this to deep talent pools and a sizable employer base that reinforce each market’s competitive position.
At the same time, they highlighted emerging locations where growth has accelerated. Denver, for example, has recorded double-digit annual increases in life sciences jobs over the past five years and is expected to maintain strong growth over the next five. While the dominant hubs remain out in front, Romero and Tillotson noted that the next tier of markets is becoming increasingly competitive as employers assess cost and talent considerations.
The report finds that some companies are looking beyond high-cost biotech clusters and weighing affordability more heavily. Markets like the Bay Area, New York, Boston and San Diego demand higher wages to attract and retain skilled workers, while secondary markets face less pressure on compensation. According to the report, Midwest and Southeast locations offer more cost-efficient labor environments, adding to their appeal.
Education pipelines are described as a key differentiator across markets. Romero and Tillotson said top hub markets have succeeded by linking world-class universities, dense employer networks, access to capital and infrastructure that supports industry collaboration. Southern markets are starting to close the gap, with Texas cities such as Austin, Dallas and Houston seeing rising enrollment in life-science related programs. Degree completions in these fields have nearly doubled over the past decade, which the authors said is strengthening the region’s talent pipeline and its ability to sustain future growth.
Labor conditions have also evolved after several turbulent years. The authors said that the hiring environment encountered bumps between 2023 and 2025 but has since stabilized. They pointed to improving M&A and IPO activity and reported that life sciences employment appears to have steadied in the first half of 2026.
A Fierce Biotech analysis cited in the discussion showed that biopharma layoff announcements fell to 50 during the first two quarters of 2025, down sharply from 128 in the comparable period a year earlier. While hiring still favors experienced professionals, the authors see early signs of a tilt toward younger workers: employees aged 22 to 34 accounted for 28% of industry hires in 2019, rising to 30% by 2025. They said this modest shift suggests companies are paying greater attention to building future talent pipelines in parallel with recruiting seasoned staff.
Even so, certain specializations remain difficult to staff. Employers report challenges filling positions in artificial intelligence, machine learning, data science, cloud engineering and computational biology, in part because life sciences companies compete with other industries for the same technical talent.
Looking ahead, the report’s authors said Texas markets are well-positioned to gain momentum over the next three to five years. They pointed to increased life sciences education, population and employment growth, as well as investments in research capacity, workforce expansion and a broad economic base, as factors that can support further industry expansion. While these markets are not expected to displace the established hubs, the authors said they are likely to capture a larger share of life sciences job growth going forward.
