The Best and Worst States to Work in America, Revealed

For many Americans, workplace benefits such as paid leave, fair wages, and strong labor protections can significantly impact quality of life. Yet the strength of these benefits varies widely depending on where people live and work.

A new study by PEO Metrics ranked 48 states based on worker benefits. The research evaluated factors such as median full-time salary, paid time off, minimum wage, union coverage, employer health insurance costs, weekly working hours, and labor protection policies rated by Oxfam to determine which states provide the most support for employees.

New York leads the ranking thanks to strong union coverage, generous paid leave, and a high minimum wage. Connecticut and Massachusetts round out the top 3, both benefiting from strong wages, robust labor protections, and competitive benefits packages.

New Jersey and Rhode Island also rank highly, combining strong salaries with shorter average workweeks and generous leave policies. Washington stands out for having the highest minimum wage in the country, while states like Vermont, Maine, California, and Delaware round out the top ten with balanced scores across wages, labor protections, and working hours.

Meanwhile, Kansas, North Carolina, Tennessee, Mississippi, and Alabama occupy the bottom of the ranking. These states tend to rely on the federal minimum wage of $7.25, have weaker worker protection policies, and show lower union coverage rates. In several cases, workers also face longer workweeks and lower median salaries, creating a combination that places them at a disadvantage compared to employees in higher-ranking states.

The full ranking: 

Rank	State	Median full-time salary	Paid time off days	Minimum wage	% of workers covered by a union contract	Employer Health Insurance Premium (Employee + 1)	Average weekly hours	Score of State policies to protect wages, analyzed by Oxfam	Score of State policies for worker protection, analyzed by Oxfam	Total Score
1	New York	70,254	11.4	16	22.5	16,702	37.8	70.79	85.71	91.13
2	Connecticut	72,834	11.4	16.35	17.2	16,573	37.8	67.86	67.86	86.78
3	Massachusetts	79,113	11.4	15	15.3	16,509	37.7	59.15	67.86	85.59
4	New Jersey	74,164	11.4	15.49	16.1	16,352	38.0	70.71	60.71	83.44
5	Rhode Island	67,142	11.4	15	17.4	16,224	37.3	53.25	64.29	79.06
6	Washington	76,323	10	16.66	19.4	14,832	38.0	76.35	75	75.40
7	Vermont	64,971	11.4	14.01	14.8	16,500	37.4	56.92	50	74.33
8	Maine	60,948	11.4	14.65	14.1	15,540	37.9	75.78	50	68.42
9	California	70,031	9.4	16.5	16.7	14,687	37.7	76.13	85.71	65.97
10	Delaware	61,651	11.4	15	11.5	15,605	38.2	62.2	39.29	65.41
11	Oregon	65,360	10	14.7	16.9	14,588	37.6	69.08	92.86	63.26
12	Maryland	74,982	8.5	15	15	15,300	38.4	63.56	57.14	58.61
13	New Hampshire	69,275	11.4	7.25	9.9	16,254	38.1	18.89	38.1	54.57
14	Colorado	72,028	9.4	14.81	6.6	14,552	38.6	72.65	60.71	51.42
15	Pennsylvania	61,973	11.4	7.25	11.7	16,337	38.2	13.57	29.76	51.22
16	Illinois	65,513	8.5	15	14	14,567	38.2	70.59	60.71	49.71
17	Minnesota	66,932	8.5	11.13	15.8	15,389	37.8	56.92	64.29	48.96
18	Arizona	60,459	10.3	14.7	4.6	14,591	38.3	69.68	40.48	47.26
19	New Mexico	54,000	10.3	12	7.9	14,846	38.0	60.45	40.48	42.53
20	Nevada	54,800	9.4	12	14.2	13,972	38.6	60.21	53.57	38.75
21	Ohio	60,300	8.5	10.7	12.8	15,244	38.1	45.76	26.19	37.45
22	Montana	55,992	9.4	10.55	12.3	14,627	38.3	53.39	33.33	37.16
23	Missouri	56,210	8.5	13.75	11.2	14,587	38.4	57.99	33.33	36.81
24	Michigan	60,613	8.5	10.56	14.2	14,564	37.8	51.12	34.52	36.70
25	Nebraska	56,723	8.5	13.5	8.4	14,762	38.6	56.78	38.1	34.91
26	Virginia	67,309	8.5	12.41	6.4	13,867	38.7	42.37	53.57	32.79
27	Utah	62,249	9.4	7.25	7.7	14,502	36.8	9.24	29.76	29.35
28	South Dakota	55,708	8.5	11.5	3	15,774	39.5	62.89	29.76	29.33
29	Wisconsin	60,803	8.5	7.25	7.5	16,006	38.2	21.5	29.76	28.85
30	Florida	54,311	8.5	13	6.2	14,490	38.6	51.76	22.62	28.10
31	Wyoming	57,343	9.4	7.25	7.3	15,709	39.5	19.57	26.19	27.98
32	Texas	58,650	10.3	7.25	5.8	14,538	39.6	14.93	26.19	26.57
33	Indiana	57,303	8.5	7.25	9.6	15,586	38.2	7.41	22.62	25.17
34	West Virginia	52,080	8.5	8.75	9.1	15,415	39.0	36.07	22.62	24.30
35	North Dakota	60,170	8.5	7.25	7.4	14,726	39.8	21.39	26.19	19.34
36	Georgia	59,240	8.5	7.25	6.1	15,010	38.9	9.82	19.05	19.28
37	Oklahoma	51,676	10.3	7.25	7.3	13,370	39.0	11.46	26.19	18.91
38	Kentucky	53,824	8.5	7.25	10.5	14,676	38.8	14.17	19.05	18.81
39	Iowa	57,716	8.5	7.25	8.2	14,171	38.4	22	22.62	18.10
40	Idaho	58,476	9.4	7.25	5.3	13,190	37.7	12.26	33.33	17.65
41	Louisiana	52,959	8.5	7.25	5.5	14,725	39.6	12.56	27.38	13.22
42	Arkansas	50,899	8.5	11	3.5	13,420	39.1	41.4	19.05	13.19
43	South Carolina	55,325	8.5	7.25	4.1	14,279	38.6	8.33	26.19	12.53
44	Kansas	57,418	8.5	7.25	9	13,173	38.8	9.87	26.19	12.48
45	North Carolina	57,727	8.5	7.25	3	14,306	38.6	7.28	8.33	11.99
46	Tennessee	55,313	8.5	7.25	5.7	13,859	38.8	7.43	19.05	11.08
47	Mississippi	50,120	9	7.25	7.4	13,354	39.5	10.22	7.14	8.35
48	Alabama	53,459	8.5	7.25	7.2	13,266	38.9	8.95	9.52	7.83

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Methodology: The study ranked all 48 U.S. states to identify which provide the best worker benefits, evaluating each state using eight key metrics: median full-time salary (17%), paid time off days (17%), minimum wage (17%), percentage of workers covered by a union contract (17%), employer health insurance premium (employee + 1) (17%), average weekly hours (5%), state policies protecting wages (Oxfam) (5%), and state policies protecting workers (Oxfam) (5%). By combining pay, leave, union coverage, health benefits, working hours, and policy protections, the study offers a complete picture of where U.S. workers get the most value from their jobs

Sources: US Census Bureau, National Conference of State Legislatures, UnionStats, Kaiser Family Foundation, Oxfam