bswi-lead-image-worker

Best and Worst States
to Work in the US

Where working families have opportunities to thrive—and where they struggle to survive.

Oxfam’s Best and Worst States to Work index shines a light on how states are responding to the growing movement for worker’s rights in the U.S. In its sixth edition, we take a look at new efforts to give workers higher pay, stronger workplace protections, and the right to organize unions and collectively bargain for a more equal future—all of which contribute to more vibrant communities.

Working families—no matter where they live—deserve support to thrive. But as Congress fails to provide universal access to paid leave or increase the minimum wage for millions of workers, many families remain stuck in cyclical patterns of poverty. The impact of this inaction does not fall equally on all communities; these policy gaps worsen inequality across states, especially on lines of gender, race, and class.

See where your state falls in our rankings, and then join us in taking action* to demand that Congress raise wages and protect workers in the U.S.

Find out more in our 2024 report  |  View the 2024 map for working women

*This action is operated by the Oxfam America Action Fund, an independent 501c4.

Tell Congress: Raise wages and protect workers

Join us in urging lawmakers to pass labor policies to grant all workers the respect and dignity they deserve—no matter where they live.

Methodology

All data is based on laws and policies in effect as of July 1, 2024.

The index is based on state policies in three dimensions: wages (40% of overall score); worker protections (35% of overall score); and rights to organize (25% of overall score).

View full spreadsheets of the data.

Wage policies

Do workers earn a wage that is sufficient to provide for them and their families? Among the data points in this dimension:

  • Ratio of minimum wage to cost of living for a family of four
  • Ratio of tipped wage to minimum wage
  • Local control over minimum wages (lack of local control is often referred to as preemption, as the state overrides local rules)
  • Extension of the minimum wage to farmworkers
  • Ratio of unemployment insurance (UI) benefits to cost of living for a family of four

Worker protection policies

This dimension considers the quality of life for workers, especially women and parents. Among the data points in this dimension:

  • Paid pumping breaks for breastfeeding workers.
  • Mandates for equal pay.
  • Paid family and medical leave; paid sick leave.
  • Fair and flexible scheduling.
  • Protection against sexual harassment in the workplace.
  • Extension of workers’ compensation to farmworkers.
  • Protections for domestic workers.
  • Heat standards for outdoor workers.
  • Warehouse worker protections.
  • Child labor protections.

Right to organize policies

This dimension asks whether workers have the right to organize and sustain a trade union. Among the data points in this dimension:

  • State so-called “right-to-work” law (which suppresses union activity).
  • Public employees’ rights to collective bargaining and wage negotiation (teachers used as a case study).
  • Mandates for project labor agreements (PLAs): agreements that stipulate that contracts for public construction projects must go exclusively to unionized firms
  • Mandates for protection against retaliation.
  • Statewide policies on collective bargaining for public workers.

Past rankings