The five hardest working states in America

North Dakota tops the list compiled by WalletHub, and the other four states all have Republican majorities: Texas, Alaska, South Dakota and Nebraska.

North Dakota is the hardest-working state in America, according to a recent study by WalletHub. The company has compared the 50 states against 10 different indicators. Among the data compared are the average number of hours worked per week, the incidence of moonlighting, the number of vacations taken and the youth employment rate.

The peace garden state is followed by Alaska, Nebraska, South Dakota and Texas. All have Republican governors.

The list of the states that work the least also includes a state governed by the Republican Party: West Virginia, whose governor is Jim Justice. The rest are are all governed by Democrats. In order, they are Michigan, New York, Rhode Island and New Mexico, which is the least hard-working state.

Market dominated by workers

North Dakota is the state with the highest youth employment rate, but the highest overall employment rates are in Nebraska, Utah, and South Dakota. On average, Americans give up 4.6 days of vacation time. The state that gives up the most vacation time is Mississippi. Alaska is the state with the most hours worked per week, and Utah is the last (37).

The unemployment rate is at very low levels by historical standards. The labor market is dominated by workers, while employers are looking for ways to attract and retain talent.

Steven Glazer, Professor of Social Science at Norwalk Community College, has told WalletHub:

Job conditions have improved since employers across various sectors of the economy have done what they can to ensure worker and customer safety to guarantee success for the individual company. Authorities can provide employers with greater access to testing and vaccines for their employees where they are difficult to come by.