Credit Downgrade Aside, How is Illinois Doing When it Comes to Jobs?

There was a lot of discussion yesterday (with a lot more coming in the future) about Illinois' credit this week after Moody's Investors Service and S&P Global Ratings downgraded Illinois credit rating to near junk status. The next part of the discussion will be what effect the downgrade will have on Illinois' jobs market.

Job hunting is never easy. Between scanning employment ads, updating resumes, contacting references, and preparing for interviews, there’s no step that isn’t somewhat tedious or downright painful. So, how does the Land of Lincoln stack up against the other 49 states and the District of Columbia when it comes to jobs. Boiling it down, it could be better, but it could be far worse.

Personal finance site, WalletHub looked at job opportunities all over America and did what they do best--crunched the numbers to see who's doing it best, and who needs improvement. Here's what they were looking for:

In order therefore to determine the most attractive states for employment, we compared the 50 states across 24 key indicators of job-market strength, opportunity and economic vitality. Our data set ranges from employment growth to median annual income to average commute time.

We'll get to Illinois' numbers, but first, the top 5 best states for jobs:

1) Washington

2) Colorado

3) New Hampshire

4) South Dakota

5) New Jersey

And the bottom 5:

46) Mississippi

47) Alabama

48) Kentucky

49) Louisiana

50) West Virginia

As for Illinois, we come in at the #30 spot overall. Here's a breakdown:

Finding a Job in Illinois (1=Best; 25=Avg.)
40th – Job Opportunities
25th – Employment Growth
9th – Monthly Average Starting Salary
45th – Unemployment Rate
5th – Median Annual Income (Adjusted for Cost of Living)
19th – Avg. Length of Work Week (in Hours)
46th – Avg. Commute Time (in Minutes)
38th – Job Satisfaction

Check out WalletHub's breakdown of the best and worst states for finding a job by clicking here.