Another plus for North Carolina: the second smallest union workforce in the U.S. in terms of percent of total employment (South Carolina is first). To come up with our list, we assess states across six broad categories: business costs, labor supply, regulatory environment, economic climate, growth prospects and quality of life. Only 83% of adults have a high school degree, which is second lowest among the states. Virginia ranks second for its regulatory climate because of its strong incentive offerings and business-friendly government policies. West Virginia ranks as the worst state for business for the third straight year, behind New Mexico, Vermont and Alaska.

Source: Forbes November 28, 2017 15:01 UTC