According to a new study, there are five million more job opportunities in the U.S., but apparently, there are not enough employees to fill them.
For the first time in a long time, Americans have more leverage than they have had in years. Apparently, they are using that power — and unprecedented mobility — to demand an environment that works in their favor, as well as a great quality of life in the workplace.
CNBC’s annual America’s Top States for Business study weighs heavily on the quality of life. Since workers increasingly hold the cards these days, it is especially important in their methodology.
The study’s Life, Health, and Inclusion category considers several factors, including crime rates, environmental quality, and health care.
But for the first time, researchers considered the availability of childcare, which the U.S. Chamber of Commerce said is a major obstacle for parents who are seeking to reenter the workforce, CNBC News reported.
They also considered the inclusiveness of state laws in areas like protections against discrimination and voting rights, which they believe are not politics, but business.
Many Gen Z and millennial workers will turn down jobs that don’t match their values, Deloitte discovered.
The study found that some states are welcoming of the new wave. However, ten states fall short.
Nevada ranked number 10 on the list mainly because of childcare access. There are roughly 400 licensed childcare centers in a state with more than 3 million people, which is a huge problem when it’s so desperately needed. Researchers also cited the state’s poor air quality as a weakness.
Tennessee is next on the list due to its lack of inclusiveness and crime. The Volunteer State has passed a series of laws that target the LGBTQ community, which includes a transgender sports bill this year.
Indiana falls eighth on the list. The study found that, like Nevada, it too lacks childcare access, and when it comes to health, the state spends a mere $76 per person on public health.
New Mexico ranks 7th on the list due to its high crime rate. It has the second highest violent crime rate in the nation, according to FBI statistics. Only Alaska is worse.
The study ranks Louisiana as number 6. The United Health Foundation confirmed it is the unhealthiest state, with the nation’s third highest cholesterol level, and comes in with the fourth highest rate of premature deaths. It’s also rippled with violent crime, with a rate among the nation’s highest.
Missouri is 5th. Voting rights aren’t a strength in the state. Despite the state agreeing to join 45 other states and allow early voting in the November general election, the same bill, scheduled to take effect after the state’s August primaries, prohibits most mail-in voting and adds a deeply controversial voter ID provision.
Health care resources place South Carolina as number 4. Becker’s Hospital Review found that there are 2.19 hospital beds per 1,000 residents, and the Palmetto State is 44th when it comes to access to clinical care.
Oklahoma residents live in the 3rd worst state because data shows l they are among the least likely to exercise or eat fruits and vegetables. The state is also among the worst for adults without health insurance and childhood vaccines.
Although skilled workers are flocking to Texas to work, it’s not a promising move when they arrive because the state also suffers from a lack of childcare access, which places them second on the list. The Lone Star State ranks No. 3 for net migration among college-educated workers, but they also grapple with a stressed health care system that has the highest rate of uninsured, new curbs on voting rights, and few protections against discrimination.
Last on the list and securing the number 1 spot in Arizona. Researchers found that its air quality, inclusiveness, crime, and health resources are extremely weak. It has the worst air quality in the nation that is coupled with a poor health care system. The state spends just $79 per person on public health, which is among the country’s lowest.
