No one wants to be unemployed. It’s a traumatic experience even for the strongest of heart. For what it is worth, the entire experience can be made better or worse depending solely on where you live. Unemployment is a federally mandated program that is managed on a state level. Some states have excellent programs designed to not only support workers during transition but even help them find a new job (or job training) as quickly as possible. Other states seem to go out of their way to be a problem instead of a solution.
The team over at 24/7 Wall St., have recently ranked all 50 states on the value and effectiveness of state unemployment programs.
To determine their ranking, 24/7 Wall St. compiled an index of various measures related to a state’s job market and unemployment insurance program. In the best states to be unemployed, people are less likely to be out of work for long, and a large share of the jobless receive helpful unemployment insurance benefits.
Here are the top and bottom five states according to 24/7 Wall St.:
1. North Dakota
2. Hawai’i
3. Massachusetts
4. Utah
5. Colorado
46. New Mexico
47. Alaska
48. Mississippi
49. Alabama
50. Louisiana
