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Alaska workers are the happiest in the nation, thanks in part to higher wages and shorter workweeks, according to a new report from SelectSoftware Reviews, a human resource platform.
Researchers looked at several factors to come up with their list, including wages, quit rates, commute times, work hours, injuries and paid time off.
Alaska employees enjoy average workweeks of 31.3 hours, average annual salaries of $52,000 and an overall job satisfaction score of 69.96 out of 100.
Job satisfaction is critical to happiness, according to Miriam Liss, professor of psychology at the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, Virginia.
“A meaningful job allows you to feel competence and ability, able to do the tasks that are meaningful to you,” Liss says. “If you’re having a more meaningful, purposeful life, you are going to experience pleasure.”
Other states with the happiest workers include Rhode Island, North Dakota, Colorado and Minnesota, according to the report.
Second place Rhode Island has a low quit rate, and the lowest injury rate of any state. North Dakota, which came in third, has an annual wage of $47,400 and an average commute of just 17.6 minutes.
The unhappiest workers are in Georgia, Texas, Florida, South Carolina and New York.
Georgia has the lowest job satisfaction, with an overall score of 29.62. Texas has the second-longest average workweek of 43.6 hours. In Florida, the average worker earns $18 per hour compared with Alaskans, who earn $32 per hour. Meanwhile, South Carolina workers make $13,000 less in annual salary than people in Alaska.
“Experiencing poverty definitely can make you unhappy,” Liss says, “because your basic needs aren’t met … and you don’t have the ability to have a lifestyle that gives you some autonomy, allows you to make choices.”
New York, which has the longest commute time of any state, came in fifth on the list of unhappiest workers.
“These results demonstrate the considerable impact a location can have on how workers feel about their job, whether that is due to state laws, commute times, or wages,” the report said. “It emphasizes the importance for employers to create environments where employees find genuine fulfillment and can thrive.”