These Are The 10 Hardest Working Places In Kansas

America has been known as the land of opportunity for as long as I can remember. Itâs the one place in the world where if you bare down and keep your nose to the grindstone, you can make a better life for your family and yourself.

And while everyone in Kansas works hard, thereâs a certain part of the Sunflower State that takes the Puritan work ethic to the extreme â the hardest working places in Kansas .

Whoâs the leader of this work around the clock ethos? That would be Andover which takes top honors for the hardest working place in Kansas. People work so hard there they manage to make getting to work a job.

So what other places burn the midnight oil to bring home a large piece of bacon? Youâre going to have to get to the office early and stay late on Fridays to beat out these places in Kansas for a promotion:

So listen up Iola as we explain how we created this ranking, you could learn some things from the rest of the state.

For more KS reading, check out:

How We Determined The Hardest Working Places In The Sunflower State

Like all problems here at Zippia, we start with the data to answer the hard questions. Some might even consider us the hardest working data-crunchers this side of the Mississippi.

In this particular case, we went to the latest version of the American Community Survey looking for answers. As luck would have it, the Census Bureau just released the 2009-2014 5-Yr Estimate which would make this analysis the first of its kind with the new data.

After scrolling through what seemed like hundreds of criteria, we settled on this set for each State:

Average hours worked
Average commute time
Workers per household (Employed labor force divided by the number households)
Labor force participation rate
Adults with a college degree

Our thinking went something along the lines of if you are spent the many years getting a degree, are actively seeking employment, work a ton of hours when employed, and spend forever getting to work, you get the Zippia hardworking stamp of approval.

After we got the data for all 59 places in Kansas, we ranked each place from 1 to 59 for each of the criteria with 1 being the âhardest workingâ.

Next, we averaged the rankings for each to create a hardworking index.

Finally, we crowned the place with the lowest hard working index the âHardest Working Place In Kansasâ. And, at the end of the day, Andover had its hard work pay off.

Read the detailed chart below to learn a bit more about why each place ranked where it did.

1. Andover

Population: 12,113 College Graduates: 47.8%
Average Hours Worked Per Week: 39.9
Workers Per Household: 1.5

2. Leawood

Population: 32,842 College Graduates: 74.3%
Average Hours Worked Per Week: 40.8
Workers Per Household: 1.3

3. Roeland Park

Population: 6,799College Graduates: 49.2%
Average Hours Worked Per Week: 38.3
Workers Per Household: 1.5

4. Olathe

Population: 129,913College Graduates: 45.0%
Average Hours Worked Per Week: 38.7
Workers Per Household: 1.6

5. Shawnee

Population: 63,597College Graduates: 43.1%
Average Hours Worked Per Week: 39.4
Workers Per Household: 1.5

6. Bel Aire

Population: 6,923 College Graduates: 52.4%
Average Hours Worked Per Week: 38.8
Workers Per Household: 1.6

7. Derby

Population: 23,419 College Graduates: 37.6%
Average Hours Worked Per Week: 39.1
Workers Per Household: 1.5

8. Lenexa

Population: 49,573 College Graduates: 54.3%
Average Hours Worked Per Week: 39.7
Workers Per Household: 1.5

9. Prairie Village

Population: 21,730College Graduates: 67.5%
Average Hours Worked Per Week: 39.5
Workers Per Household: 1.2

10. Valley Center

Population: 6,449 College Graduates: 29.1%
Average Hours Worked Per Week: 39.3
Workers Per Household: 1.5

Detailed List Of Hardest Working Places In Kansas

City	Rank	Population	College Graduates	Average Hours Worked Per Week	Workers Per Household
Andover	1	12,113	47.8%	39.9	1.5
Leawood	2	32,842	74.3%	40.8	1.3
Roeland Park	3	6,799	49.2%	38.3	1.5
Olathe	4	129,913	45.0%	38.7	1.6
Shawnee	5	63,597	43.1%	39.4	1.5
Bel Aire	6	6,923	52.4%	38.8	1.6
Derby	7	23,419	37.6%	39.1	1.5
Lenexa	8	49,573	54.3%	39.7	1.5
Prairie Village	9	21,730	67.5%	39.5	1.2
Valley Center	10	6,449	29.1%	39.3	1.5
Spring Hill	11	5,618	26.7%	39.7	1.6
Colby	12	5,411	28.9%	39.7	1.4
Overland Park	13	178,945	57.4%	39.3	1.4
Gardner	14	20,128	29.0%	40.6	1.6
Mulvane	15	6,000	37.9%	37.7	1.4
Lansing	16	11,535	31.6%	39.9	1.5
Mission	17	9,451	52.7%	39.7	1.2
Manhattan	18	55,112	51.7%	34.6	1.5
Merriam	19	11,191	33.4%	39.3	1.4
Hays	20	20,886	35.2%	38.1	1.5
McPherson	21	13,205	28.7%	39.8	1.3
Lawrence	22	90,194	53.4%	34.0	1.5
Garden City	23	26,924	17.8%	39.6	1.5
Eudora	24	6,152	33.6%	41.0	1.4
De Soto	25	5,888	25.1%	37.0	1.5
Park City	26	7,194	22.2%	39.2	1.5
Pittsburg	27	20,336	34.0%	34.8	1.3
Salina	28	47,894	23.9%	38.1	1.3
Dodge City	29	27,950	15.9%	39.8	1.6
Paola	30	5,589	24.2%	37.3	1.3
Newton	31	19,144	24.0%	38.1	1.3
Wichita	32	385,518	28.8%	38.5	1.3
Junction City	33	24,691	20.2%	42.4	1.4
Ulysses	34	6,010	19.8%	41.8	1.5
Haysville	35	11,235	17.5%	39.2	1.4
Bonner Springs	36	7,420	20.6%	38.2	1.4
Pratt	37	6,889	23.1%	39.4	1.1
Fort Scott	38	7,957	22.2%	37.2	1.2
Leavenworth	39	35,738	30.3%	37.9	1.3
Abilene	40	6,729	19.8%	39.2	1.2
Emporia	41	24,787	25.5%	36.0	1.4
Liberal	42	20,846	12.4%	39.7	1.6
Winfield	43	12,324	23.0%	38.0	1.3
El Dorado	44	12,931	20.2%	38.3	1.2
Ottawa	45	12,548	20.5%	37.0	1.3
Atchison	46	10,920	22.0%	35.6	1.4
Topeka	47	127,660	27.5%	37.8	1.2
Augusta	48	9,239	22.8%	39.5	1.2
Hutchinson	49	41,946	19.6%	38.6	1.2
Parsons	50	10,307	23.1%	38.0	1.2
Chanute	51	9,194	18.1%	37.1	1.2
Wellington	52	8,028	17.7%	38.7	1.3
Great Bend	53	15,942	16.8%	40.7	1.2
Kansas City	54	147,598	15.5%	38.3	1.3
Concordia	55	5,327	19.3%	37.0	1.2
Independence	56	9,282	20.3%	39.0	1.2
Coffeyville	57	10,034	13.0%	38.2	1.2
Arkansas City	58	12,316	15.7%	36.9	1.2
Iola	59	5,650	16.8%	37.1	1.1

Never miss an opportunity that’s right for you.

Author

Chris Kolmar

Chris Kolmar is a co-founder of Zippia and the editor-in-chief of the Zippia career advice blog. He has hired over 50 people in his career, been hired five times, and wants to help you land your next job. His research has been featured on the New York Times, Thrillist, VOX, The Atlantic, and a host of local news. More recently, he's been quoted on USA Today, BusinessInsider, and CNBC.

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