54.8%
Labor Force Participation Rate
2024
62.5%
US Average
2024
Historical data
Coming soon
Long-run charts for this indicator are on the way.
Compared to the United States
| Indicator | West Virginia | United States |
|---|---|---|
| Labor Force Participation Rate (%) | 54.8 | 62.5 |
National ranking
How states rank by labor force participation.
| #1 | Utah | 68.8% |
| #2 | Colorado | 68.7% |
| #3 | Minnesota | 68.5% |
| #4 | South Dakota | 68.4% |
| #5 | New Hampshire | 68% |
| #6 | Virginia | 65.9% |
| #7 | Massachusetts | 65.4% |
| #8 | Wisconsin | 65.4% |
| #9 | Washington | 65.4% |
| #10 | Illinois | 64.9% |
| #11 | Texas | 64.5% |
| #12 | New Jersey | 63.9% |
| #13 | Rhode Island | 63.8% |
| #14 | Indiana | 63.1% |
| #15 | Montana | 63% |
| #16 | Missouri | 63% |
| #17 | Nevada | 62.5% |
| #18 | Ohio | 62.4% |
| #19 | Pennsylvania | 62.4% |
| #20 | California | 62.4% |
| #21 | Georgia | 62% |
| #22 | Oregon | 61.8% |
| #23 | Arizona | 61.5% |
| #24 | New York | 61.1% |
| #25 | Oklahoma | 61% |
| #26 | Maine | 60.8% |
| #27 | North Carolina | 60.6% |
| #28 | Delaware | 60.3% |
| #29 | Michigan | 60% |
| #30 | Florida | 59.5% |
| #31 | Kentucky | 59.5% |
| #32 | Tennessee | 59.2% |
| #33 | Louisiana | 58.5% |
| #34 | New Mexico | 56.9% |
| #35 | Alaska | 21% |
| #36 | Vermont | 15 |
| #37 | Wyoming | 12% |
Overview
Only about 54.8% of working-age West Virginians are in the labor force, the lowest share of any state and far below the 62.5% U.S. average, a gap linked to disability rates, an aging population, and lingering effects of the coal industry's decline.
Did you know?
- West Virginia has had the lowest labor force participation rate of any state for many consecutive years.