Which state economies are most adept at balancing the demands of both employers and employees?
My reliable spreadsheet has generated two state economic rankings in recent months. One adopted the employer’s point of view. The other saw economics from the perspective of the worker.
To put it mildly, there were strong reactions to both scorecards, with California receiving high points for worker perks but low marks for business friendliness.
These rankings were merged to produce a scorecard that measures what I’ll refer to as the most balanced state economies in an effort to resolve a number of arguments.
According to this calculation, California ranks ninth for managing the conflict between bosses and employees in an acceptable manner.
Virginia was the top state on this economic symmetry metric, followed by Washington, Colorado, Florida, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire. Texas came in at number ten.
Louisiana, Mississippi, West Virginia, Kentucky, and Arkansas are the worst states.
How did we get here?
Let’s go back and review those earlier grades.
Regarding business-leaning rankings that are generated using statistics that monitor everything from growth to taxes and regulations California came in at number thirty.
North Carolina, Utah, Texas, Tennessee, and Florida were at the top. Hawaii, Louisiana, Alaska, New Mexico, and Rhode Island had the lowest scores.
Regarding employee-centric thinking, my rankings took into account factors like pay, labor regulations, and layoffs. California had the third-best score.
Massachusetts and Washington led the Golden State, with New York and Connecticut following. In contrast, Mississippi, Georgia, Louisiana, West Virginia, and Idaho were the least favorable states for workers.
Additionally, California’s main rivals, Texas (ranked No. 34) and Florida (ranked No. 20), were rated by this worker-friendly criteria.
Bottom line
This is more than a simple comparison of two business-related statistics samples. Companies and governments frequently find it difficult to handle the boss vs. worker scrum conflict.
Examine these findings more broadly, since states were divided into three groups based on their balance scores.
The states with the highest scores have the highest pay, the greatest number of workers, and the fastest rate of employment creation since 2019. In this argument, the majority may find the middle position most appealing.
As of September, my balance ranked in the top third had 77 million employees, or around half of the country’s workforce. The average yearly income was $60,400. In just five years, the states created 5 million new employment, representing a 7% increase.
However, some bosses might find the low-score states’ modest salary appealing.
23 million workers in the states at the bottom of the balance gradings made an average of $55,000 per year. In five years, these states created 1 million new employment, representing a 4.6% increase.
That is slower hiring, indeed. However, job creation also surpasses the center slice of the equilibrium ranking. Even though those states had 1.1 million new jobs and 57 million workers earning $57,000 annually, the growth rate was only 2%.
The Southern California News Group’s business columnist is Jonathan Lansner. His email address is [email protected].
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