New Index Ranks Best and Worst States for Workers

An orchard worker unloads a bag of pears in Hood River, Oregon on August 13, 2021.

An orchard worker unloads a bag of pears in Hood River, Oregon on August 13, 2021. MICHAEL HANSON/AFP via Getty Images

 

Connecting state and local government leaders

Researchers looked at over two dozen types of policies in all 50 states as part of their analysis.

When it comes to proactively protecting and supporting workers, Oregon is the state with the best policies in place, while North Carolina ranks worst, according to a new report. 

Oxfam America—a nonprofit focused on ending poverty—ranked the best and worst states to work based on three policy areas: wages, worker protections and rights to organize. The report looks at all 50 states, as well as Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico.

The 10 best states for workers, according to the report, include:

  1. Oregon
  2. California
  3. Washington
  4. Washington, D.C.
  5. New York
  6. Massachusetts
  7. Connecticut
  8. New Jersey
  9. Colorado
  10. Illinois

This is Oregon’s second consecutive year at the top of the Oxfam ranking. The state has held its lead spot in part because of its strong unemployment benefits and comprehensive paid leave policy, which covers part-time employees and includes “safe leave” for survivors of sexual assault, harassment and domestic violence. 

Meanwhile, Oregon, California and Washington are the only states with laws that protect outdoor workers from extreme heat. Oxfam America has been issuing its “Best States to Work Index” annually since 2018, but this year’s analysis is the first to include data about what states are doing to protect workers from extreme heat. 

The 10 worst states for workers, according to Oxfam, (listed from worst to better) include:

  1. North Carolina 
  2. Mississippi
  3. Georgia
  4. Alabama
  5. Texas
  6. South Carolina
  7. Kansas
  8. Oklahoma
  9. Utah
  10. Idaho

All of the bottom-ranking states have a minimum wage of the federally mandated $7.25 per hour and “right to work” laws that weaken labor unions. None of these states provide paid sick or family leave.

The analysis is intended to offer a blueprint for how states can better support their workers, as well as highlight policies that are working well, the report said. 

“There is no state with a perfect score; even those states at the very top of our ranking have room for improvement,” it said. 

To see each state’s “scorecard,” click here.

Other Findings

  • In no state can a full-time worker support a family of four on minimum wage, the report said. Washington comes closest, where minimum wage covers 38% of a four-member family’s cost of living, the report said. Every state is worse in this metric compared to last year, largely due to inflation. 
  • Most states do not mandate any kind of paid leave or fair scheduling practices. 
  • There is a strong correlation between a state’s ranking and its residents’ well being, as measured by taking into account food insecurity, infant mortality and the percentage of the population living below the federal poverty level.

The report is based on policies that were in place as of July 1, and researchers tracked 26 policies for the analysis. 

To read the full report, click here

X
This website uses cookies to enhance user experience and to analyze performance and traffic on our website. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners. Learn More / Do Not Sell My Personal Information
Accept Cookies
X
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Do Not Sell My Personal Information

When you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect information. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences or your device, and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to and to provide a more personalized web experience. However, you can choose not to allow certain types of cookies, which may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of our First Party Strictly Necessary Cookies as they are deployed in order to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting the cookie banner and remembering your settings, to log into your account, to redirect you when you log out, etc.). For more information about the First and Third Party Cookies used please follow this link.

Allow All Cookies

Manage Consent Preferences

Strictly Necessary Cookies - Always Active

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data, Targeting & Social Media Cookies

Under the California Consumer Privacy Act, you have the right to opt-out of the sale of your personal information to third parties. These cookies collect information for analytics and to personalize your experience with targeted ads. You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale of personal information by using this toggle switch. If you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. Additionally, you may contact our legal department for further clarification about your rights as a California consumer by using this Exercise My Rights link

If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences.

Targeting cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.

Social media cookies are set by a range of social media services that we have added to the site to enable you to share our content with your friends and networks. They are capable of tracking your browser across other sites and building up a profile of your interests. This may impact the content and messages you see on other websites you visit. If you do not allow these cookies you may not be able to use or see these sharing tools.

If you want to opt out of all of our lead reports and lists, please submit a privacy request at our Do Not Sell page.

Save Settings
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Cookie List

A cookie is a small piece of data (text file) that a website – when visited by a user – asks your browser to store on your device in order to remember information about you, such as your language preference or login information. Those cookies are set by us and called first-party cookies. We also use third-party cookies – which are cookies from a domain different than the domain of the website you are visiting – for our advertising and marketing efforts. More specifically, we use cookies and other tracking technologies for the following purposes:

Strictly Necessary Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Functional Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Performance Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Social Media Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Targeting Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.