These Are The 10 Hardest Working Places In South Dakota

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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 South Dakota works hard, thereâs a certain part of the Mount Rushmore State that takes the Puritan work ethic to the extreme â the hardest working places in South Dakota .

Whoâs the leader of this work around the clock ethos? That would be Harrisburg which takes top honors for the hardest working place in South Dakota. 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 South Dakota for a promotion:

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

For more SD reading, check out:

How We Determined The Hardest Working Places In The Mount Rushmore 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 43 places in South Dakota, we ranked each place from 1 to 43 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 South Dakotaâ. And, at the end of the day, Harrisburg 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. Harrisburg

Population: 4,678 College Graduates: 36.3%
Average Hours Worked Per Week: 41.2
Workers Per Household: 1.8

2. Tea

Source: Flickr

Population: 4,226College Graduates: 35.2%
Average Hours Worked Per Week: 39.9
Workers Per Household: 1.7

3. Colonial Pine Hills

Population: 2,328 College Graduates: 48.2%
Average Hours Worked Per Week: 36.9
Workers Per Household: 1.7

4. Dakota Dunes

Population: 2,895 College Graduates: 56.1%
Average Hours Worked Per Week: 42.7
Workers Per Household: 1.4

5. Beresford

Population: 2,411College Graduates: 29.3%
Average Hours Worked Per Week: 39.8
Workers Per Household: 1.3

6. Summerset

Population: 2,240 College Graduates: 28.3%
Average Hours Worked Per Week: 43.2
Workers Per Household: 1.7

7. Brandon

Population: 9,350College Graduates: 31.6%
Average Hours Worked Per Week: 39.1
Workers Per Household: 1.6

8. Pierre

Population: 13,885College Graduates: 33.2%
Average Hours Worked Per Week: 39.5
Workers Per Household: 1.4

9. Volga

Population: 2,259College Graduates: 28.0%
Average Hours Worked Per Week: 39.7
Workers Per Household: 1.6

10. Canton

Population: 3,218College Graduates: 27.8%
Average Hours Worked Per Week: 40.3
Workers Per Household: 1.5

Detailed List Of Hardest Working Places In South Dakota

City	Rank	Population	College Graduates	Average Hours Worked Per Week	Workers Per Household
Harrisburg	1	4,678	36.3%	41.2	1.8
Tea	2	4,226	35.2%	39.9	1.7
Colonial Pine Hills	3	2,328	48.2%	36.9	1.7
Dakota Dunes	4	2,895	56.1%	42.7	1.4
Beresford	5	2,411	29.3%	39.8	1.3
Summerset	6	2,240	28.3%	43.2	1.7
Brandon	7	9,350	31.6%	39.1	1.6
Pierre	8	13,885	33.2%	39.5	1.4
Volga	9	2,259	28.0%	39.7	1.6
Canton	10	3,218	27.8%	40.3	1.5
Fort Pierre	11	2,322	26.9%	41.6	1.4
Blackhawk	12	2,754	24.2%	38.1	1.6
Elk Point	13	2,075	28.8%	39.8	1.3
Dell Rapids	14	3,687	27.7%	39.5	1.5
Hartford	15	2,781	29.1%	38.6	1.7
Sioux Falls	16	160,964	32.5%	38.9	1.5
Brookings	17	22,645	48.5%	34.2	1.6
Rapid Valley	18	8,619	18.0%	39.5	1.7
Box Elder	19	8,683	17.5%	40.2	1.7
Winner	20	2,871	22.9%	41.0	1.2
Spearfish	21	10,836	31.5%	37.9	1.3
North Sioux City	22	2,551	24.5%	43.3	1.3
Lennox	23	2,155	22.6%	39.6	1.2
Vermillion	24	10,697	48.2%	31.3	1.5
Aberdeen	25	26,979	26.5%	38.2	1.3
Belle Fourche	26	5,677	15.3%	39.7	1.3
Rapid City	27	70,126	29.2%	38.5	1.3
Madison	28	6,830	27.1%	37.6	1.5
Watertown	29	21,795	20.6%	39.4	1.3
Mitchell	30	15,490	26.9%	38.7	1.2
Yankton	31	14,513	28.3%	37.6	1.3
Redfield	32	2,583	17.8%	38.6	1.1
Huron	33	12,982	20.8%	38.7	1.2
Chamberlain	34	2,660	22.5%	39.0	1.3
Hot Springs	35	3,565	22.7%	38.0	1.0
Sturgis	36	6,652	17.4%	38.4	1.1
Mobridge	37	3,293	24.0%	41.3	1.1
Lead	38	3,097	24.1%	41.1	1.1
Flandreau	39	2,088	26.4%	39.4	1.1
Milbank	40	3,310	18.3%	38.9	1.2
Sisseton	41	2,597	17.3%	37.7	1.3
North Eagle Butte	42	2,083	12.3%	36.6	1.6
Pine Ridge	43	3,329	15.9%	37.6	1.4

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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