CARBONDALE, Pa. — A new study ranks the Keystone State as number 18 for the worst overall location for working from home, factoring in broadband access, remote job growth, and the current number of remote jobs statewide.
“Pennsylvania either came in 34th best or 18th worst depending on if you’re an optimist and pessimist," said Michael Gardon of CareerCloud.com.
According to the rankings, the top spots to work from home nationwide are Utah, Colorado, Washington D.C., and Virginia.
“It’s definitely the wave of the future, I think we will see at least doubling in the people that work remotely in the number of people that work remotely by 2025, and we may even have to rethink that after this pandemic," said Gardon.
Experts believe Pennsylvania’s ranking has a lot to do with the state’s economy: what kind of jobs makeup industries here and whether or not those jobs can be done from home.
“I think the big story there is the high concentration of blue-collar jobs as opposed to broad knowledge-based jobs.”
Michael Gardon said Pennsylvania can become a better place to work from home if state leaders start to promote more jobs that can be done from home and also work to promote amenities like outdoor activities and more that make work/life balance better.
That study ranks Mississippi, Alaska, Maine, Louisiana, and Wyoming as the worst 5 states for remote jobs.