Nine of the fifteen states with the highest imprisonment rates in 2023, (latest available national data), are also among the 15 states with the lowest share of workers who are union members in 2025
These nine states are also all “right to work” states. That is not a coincidence.
States with the highest imprisonment rates (2023) | States with the lowest union
membership rates (2025) | ||
|---|---|---|---|
State | Imprisonment Rate per 100,000 Residents | State | Union Membership |
| Mississippi | 652 | South Dakota | 2.30% |
| Louisiana | 617 | North Carolina | 2.50% |
| Arkansas | 596 | South Carolina | 2.70% |
| Oklahoma | 545 | Arkansas | 2.80% |
| Idaho | 490 | Utah | 3.80% |
| Texas | 477 | Arizona | 4.10% |
| Georgia | 449 | Idaho | 4.10% |
| Arizona | 448 | Mississippi | 4.20% |
| Montana | 438 | Louisiana | 4.40% |
| Kentucky | 423 | Tennessee | 4.80% |
| South Dakota | 405 | Texas | 4.90% |
| Alabama | 394 | Georgia | 5.10% |
| Ohio | 394 | Florida | 5.40% |
| Missouri | 385 | Virginia | 5.40% |
| Florida | 382 | Colorado | 5.90% |
