Louisiana
Hawaii, Louisiana top list of 10 worst states to work in 2024 – Washington Examiner
(The Center Square) – Out of the top 10 worst states to work in, four still continue to see some of the highest numbers of in-migration, data from a recent study and the 2024 U.S. Census Bureau cumulatively show.
Taking into account disposable income, average commute time, average hours worked per week, workplace safety, and happiness levels by state, the weighted analysis by Vaziri Law ranks Hawaii, Louisiana, Tennessee, Kentucky, Nevada, Vermont, Indiana, West Virginia, Arizona, and South Carolina as the worst states in which to work.
Many of the study’s findings are unsurprising, given the financial hardship reported in most of those states, with the notable exception of Vermont.
For example, Louisiana, Kentucky and West Virginia have some of the highest poverty rates in the nation, while Tennessee and Nevada have some of the highest numbers of residents in financial distress, according to a study by personal finance website WalletHub.
But the Vaziri Law analysis actually ranks Hawaii, which consistently scores low marks for economic freedom, as the number one worst state to work. The rating is slightly skewed by the state having the lowest average disposable income, $5,929 per working resident. Hawaiian workers do have good workplace safety rates, ranking 13th out of all 50 states, and a relatively high happiness score of 66.31 out of 100, with 100 being the happiest.
In the second worst state to work in, Louisiana residents have the longest average working hours on the list at 44.3 per week, and also face poor workplace safety conditions, ranking 40th out of 50. Additionally, workers in the Bayou State are some of the most depressed in the nation, reporting a happiness index of 34.81. But they have roughly triple the disposable income of Hawaiian workers, at $15,364.
“This research highlights the significant challenges workers face across the U.S., from financial strain to poor work-life balance,” a spokesperson from Vaziri Law told The Center Square. “States like Hawaii, with the lowest disposable income, and Louisiana, with extended work hours and low happiness levels, underscore the need for systemic changes to improve workplace conditions, safety, and overall quality of life for employees.”
Tennessee, coming in third, has a good workplace safety ranking of 11 out of 50 but a happiness index of 43.35. The average worker has a disposable income of $18,078 and works just over 40 hours a week with a 26-minute commute.
In Kentucky, workers dedicate an average of 40.8 hours to work per week and have around $15,982 in disposable income. The happiness index rating is low, sitting at 38.36.
By contrast, Nevada’s happiness index is ten points higher, but the average disposable income is more than $2,000 lower. Both states have decent workplace safety ratings.
Despite having the highest workplace safety rate in the country and a 37.8 hour work week on average, Vermont ranks low due to the 48.46 happiness index and $15,263 average disposable income.
Indiana does better at $17,293, but workers put in more hours and have slightly lower happiness and safety rankings.
West Virginia ranks dead last on the list for both workplace safety – 45 out of 50 – and happiness levels at 33.83; plus, it has the longest average commute time. But a West Virginia resident’s average disposable income of $14,309, nearly is triple that of Hawaii.
Arizona, in ninth place on the list, reports that its average worker has a disposable income of $18,764 and works 40.6 hours per week. It has a relatively high workplace safety rank of 9 and a mediocre happiness index of 50.22.
Residents of South Carolina have an average of $15,824 in disposable income on hand. They face worse safety conditions, ranking 16, and have a lower happiness index, 49.62, than Arizonans. But South Carolina workers also clock in two hours less on average, around 38.2 hours per week.
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Even with less-than-ideal work conditions, Arizona and South Carolina, as well as Tennessee and Nevada, continue to be some of the top destinations for domestic migration, according to the IRS and 2024 Census Bureau data.
Other factors, like safety, job opportunities, political climate and more play a factor in-migration.
Louisiana
Federal appeals court upholds Texas’ Ten Commandments law. What does it mean for Louisiana?
A federal appeals court on Tuesday upheld a Texas law requiring public schools to post the Ten Commandments, just weeks after the same court allowed a similar Louisiana law to take effect.
A majority of judges on the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Texas’ law, which is nearly identical to Louisiana’s, is constitutional and does not violate students’ religious freedom. In February, the court lifted an injunction on Louisiana’s law, which cleared schools to put up the posters, but the judges said it was too early to rule on that law’s constitutionality.
Tuesday’s ruling could bode well for Louisiana’s law if it eventually returns to the 5th Circuit, considered the country’s most conservative federal court of appeals.
In their majority opinion, the judges rejected the argument that posting the Ten Commandments in classrooms would pressure students to honor the biblical mandates or adopt particular beliefs.
“To plaintiffs, merely exposing children to religious language is enough to make the displays engines of coercive indoctrination. We disagree,” the majority wrote about the Texas law, known as S.B. 10. A minority of the court’s active judges dissented.
Even though Tuesday’s ruling only addressed the Texas case, defenders of Louisiana’s legislation celebrated it as a victory. Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill said the 5th Circuit’s argument in upholding Texas’ law was identical to the one Louisiana made in defense of its law.
“Our law clearly was always constitutional,” she posted on X, “and I am grateful that the Fifth Circuit has now definitively agreed with us.”
Louisiana’s Republican-controlled Legislature passed the law in 2024, which requires all public K-12 schools and colleges to display the Ten Commandments in every classroom. A group of parents quickly challenged the law in court, and a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction that stopped the state from enforcing the law.
In February, the 5th Circuit reversed the lower court’s decision, saying it had been premature to block the law before it took effect. The judges said they could not rule on the law’s constitutionality before seeing how it played out in schools.
But in the case of Texas’ law, which that state’s Republican-led Legislature passed in 2025, the court did rule on the merits.
Rejecting arguments made by attorneys for the Texas families who challenged the law, the 5th Circuit majority said that requiring public schools to post the Ten Commandments does not amount to the government endorsing a particular religion, which the U.S. Constitution forbids. The law also does not impose religious beliefs on students, the judges wrote.
“As noted, S.B. 10 authorizes no religious instruction and gives teachers no license to contradict children’s religious beliefs (or their parents’),” the majority opinion says. “No child is made to recite the Commandments, believe them, or affirm their divine origin.”
The Texas families were represented by the American Civil Liberties Union, ACLU of Texas, Americans United for Separation of Church and State, and the Freedom From Religion Foundation, with the law firm Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP serving as pro bono counsel. The same groups, including Louisiana’s ACLU chapter, represented the Louisiana families.
In a statement Tuesday, the organizations said they are “extremely disappointed” by the 5th Circuit’s ruling, adding that they expect to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.
“The First Amendment safeguards the separation of church and state, and the freedom of families to choose how, when and if to provide their children with religious instruction,” the groups said. “This decision tramples those rights.”
Nearly all major industries in Louisiana added jobs over the past year, signaling momentum for a stronger future, according to a recent report from Leaders for a Better Louisiana.
The organizat…
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SHREVEPORT, La. (KTAL/KMSS) — Police say a man shot and killed eight children, including seven of his own, following a domestic dispute in Shreveport.
The incident took place early Sunday morning, April 19, on West 79th Street in the Cedar Grove neighborhood. According to the Caddo Parish Coroner’s Office, the victims included three boys and five girls, aged between three and 11-years-old. Seven of the children were siblings, while one was a cousin. Two adult females were also injured, including one who was shot at a home located in the 500 block of Harrison Street.
One of the adults was inside the home on West 79th Street when the children were killed. She managed to escape through a window with two of the children and reached the roof. The woman jumped down with one of the children. Unfortunately, the other child did not manage to escape. Police later found his body on the roof with a gunshot wound. The surviving child was taken to the hospital with a broken leg.
The children were identified by their mothers as Jayla (age 3), Shayla (age 5), Kayla (age 6), Layla (age 7), Markaydon (age 10), Sariahh (age 11), Khedarrion (age 6), and Braylon (age 5).
Authorities say the suspect and father of the victims, Shamar Elkins, was the only person who fired shots that led to the juveniles’ deaths.
Authorities noted that Elkins stole a vehicle near West 79th Street after he shot the victims. He was pursued by patrol officers into Bossier Parish, where they discharged their weapons and fatally shot him on Brompton Lane. Louisiana State Police will take over the investigation involving the officers.
Shreveport Mayor Tom Arceneaux expressed his thoughts on the matter, saying, “We have a hurting community. We have hurting families. We have hurting police officers, coroner’s personnel, fire department, sheriff people, and this affects the entire community. We all mourn with these families. I ask, it’s a Sunday morning. I ask all of you who are, who are listening, who might be able to. Pray at your services this morning for not just this family, for all the victims, for the victims who are at the hospital, and for the Cedar Grove community and for the community at large.”
Attorney General Liz Murrill also commented on the tragic shooting, stating, “Multiple law enforcement agencies are investigating this tragic situation. We do not yet know all the details, but I am deeply saddened by the senseless loss of life. I’m praying for the victims and their family members in the wake of this devastating violence.”
According to the Director of Strategy and Communications, Mary Nash-Wood, two of the children attended Summer Grove, and at least four attended Linwood Charter School.
The police have not determined a motive. More updates will be provided as the information becomes available.
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