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Georgia in Top 15 Hardest-Working States in Nation

Georgia is one of the hardest-working states in the nation, but for some workers, that’s not necessarily a good thing. The personal finance website WalletHub ranks Georgia number 12 on its list of 2021’s Hardest-Working States in America. Here’s analyst Jill Gonzalez.

“Georgia ranked more so in the top 10 when it comes to those direct work factors,” Gonzalez said. “The work week there is longer, the number of people working multiple jobs is higher, the share of households where no adults work is higher.”

That work ethic translates into less free time for employees, even when they’ve earned it.

“More people are actually leaving vacation time unused in Georgia which means that they are working that much harder. So it might not be the best news to actual workers, but probably very good news to employers.”

The study considered a range of factors in compiling the list. They include average workweek hours, share of workers with multiple jobs, and annual volunteer hours per resident.

The work week there is longer, the number of people working multiple jobs is higher, the share of households where no adults work is higher.

Analysts say Americans took even fewer paid vacation days than usual during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It’s a very American kind of thing, Americans only use about half of their vacation days during a typical year,” according to Gonzalez. “They forfeited even more than usual during the pandemic.”

Alaska was the hardest-working state, New Mexico came in at number 50.