Hustle Culture: The US States With the Highest Burnout Risk
Since the pandemic, job burnout has become an increasing concern for many workers across the country stemming from increased and unmanageable workloads, a lack of rewards and control, and social isolation.
This leaves many workers stressed out, experiencing exhaustion and lacking in productivity, as well as brain fog and mental distance from their workload.
But which state’s residents are the most stressed out at work? We’ve looked into the length of working hours, annual salaries, commute times, and Google searches for “burnout” to discover which state can be crowned the most burned out.
The Most Over-Worked States
1.Texas
Burnout Score: 7.3/10
Texas can be crowned the most burned-out location for workers, taking the top spot with a score of 7.3. The Lone Star State ranks first thanks to it being in the top five for longest working hours, with employees averaging 40 hours per week. Texas also takes second place for its workforce using the search term “burnout”, making it the most stressed state in our index.
2.Florida and Louisiana
Burnout Score: 7.1/10
Sharing second place are Florida and Louisiana. The Sunshine State scores highly thanks to its Google searches for “burnout”, taking fourth place for the factor. Florida also ranks in the top 10 for the longest average commute time, taking it to second place overall.
Texas’s neighbor, Louisiana also takes second place. Employees in Louisiana are some of the hardest-working in the country, ranking in the top 10 for average working hours. They are also one of the lowest-paid states in the index, taking fifth place for the factor and making the state the second most stressed in the country.
3.Tennessee
Burnout Score: 6.8/10
Tennessee comes third in the index, ranking in the top 15 for both working hours and salary. The Southeastern state also ranks in the top 20 for both average commute time and Google searches for “burnout”.
The States With the Longest Working Hours
1.Alaska
41:36 Hours
Spending too much time at work can negatively impact your mental health and can lead to brain fog, stress, and eventually burnout. This is bad news for employees in Alaska, as they take the top spot for working the most hours, averaging just over 41:30 a week. Although working overtime in Alaska does have benefits, employees are entitled by law to overtime pay if they work over 40 hours a week.
2.Wyoming
40:18 Hours
Overworking can also affect your physical health, increasing your risk of high blood pressure, heart disease, and strokes. This puts workers in Wyoming at greater risk of these medical issues as they average 40:18 hours a week, taking second place for the factor.
3.North Dakota
40:06 Hours
Taking third place for overwork is The Peace Garden State with an average of just over 40 hours a week. Working long hours like North Dakotans can negatively impact your health by reducing your fitness levels, interfering with your diet, and contributing to a lack of energy and poor concentration.
The States With the Lowest Annual Salary
1.Mississippi
$54,000
Mississippi has the lowest annual salary in the index, $3,000 lower than West Virginia in second place and $30,000 lower than California, with the highest annual salary. Mississippi is one of the poorest states in the US, with more families living in poverty than in any other state. The minimum wage has not increased since 2011, contributing to worker burnout as a result of financial stress.
2.West Virginia
$57,000
Taking second place is West Virginia, with an income of just under $60,000 a year on average. The economy of The Mountain State depends heavily on its mineral resources, so the decline in demand for coal has created challenges for workers. The fact that West Virginia has one of the lowest percentages of adults with a degree also contributes to its low average salary.
3.Arkansas
$58,000
Arkansas ranks third, with an average annual salary of $58,000. More than half of families in the state struggle financially, which could lead to financial stress and contribute to worker burnout.
The States With the Longest Commute
1.New York
34 minutes
New York has the longest one-way commute time in the index, at 34 minutes. The city that shares its name with the state is one of the most congested in the US, although New York City will be introducing congestion pricing for areas of the city commonly facing gridlock, which could also decrease stress levels for workers stuck in heavy traffic every day.
2.Maryland
33 minutes
Commuting can be one of the most anxiety-inducing parts of the workday, with the unpredictability and crowding of congestion adding to the stresses of the day before you’ve even begun. The citizens of Maryland are all too familiar with this stress, as they have an average one-way commute time of 33 minutes, only a minute less than first place.
3.New Jersey
32 minutes
Taking third place is New York’s neighbor New Jersey with an average commute time of 32 minutes. Workers in The Garden State experience one of the most stressful commutes as it has some of the most congested roads in the country, with commuters losing an average of 86 hours stuck in traffic in 2021.
The States With the Most Searches for “Burnout” In 2021
1.California
104,400 Searches
Taking first place is California with over 100,000 searches for “burnout” in 2021, which is over 150 times more searches than Wyoming in last place. The state is home to Silicon Valley and the tech giants Apple, Amazon, and Meta and tech workers in California are feeling the pressure thanks to increased workloads, a lack of rewards, and a lack of control over their work.
2. Texas
54,000 Searches
With slightly under half the searches of California, Texas takes second place. Workers in Texas face more stress than in other states thanks to the state’s long working hours and low income-to-housing ratio and the high number of workers without health insurance too.
3.New York
48,000 Searches
Just behind Texas is the state of New York, with just under 50,000 workers looking for information on the condition in 2021. New Yorkers take third place thanks to the condition becoming more widely recognized during and compounded by the COVID pandemic, with workers suffering from the effects of social isolation and disillusionment with work.
Methodology
Beginning with a list of the 50 US states, we gave each state a normalized score out of ten on each of the following factors, before taking an average across each of these scores to reach our final overall score out of ten.
The states with the longest working hours: the mean usual hours worked over 12 months for workers aged 16 to 64 according to the 2019 American Community Survey.
The states with the lowest annual salary: the average annual base salary in each state according to Payscale.
The states with the longest commute: the mean travel time to work in minutes in each state according to the 2020 American Community Survey.
The states with the most searches for “burnout” in 2021: the total number of Google searches for “burnout” in each state in 2021 according to Google Ads.
