A previous version of this story referred to the civilian participation rate, when the data presented was the employment-to-population ratio. This story also has been updated to incorporate both revised and more recent data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Bloomberg Diminished demand for coal has hurt the West Virginian jobs picture.

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — West Virginia has a dubious distinction: Less than half of its adult civilians have a job.

State data compiled by the Labor Department show that West Virginia’s employment-to-population rate has fallen to 49.1% in January.

In December, Mississippi became the second state to have an employment-to-population rate below 50%, at 49.7%, but, by January, that state’s figure had edged up to exactly 50%.

The troubles that have befallen West Virginia have been well publicized. Notable among them is a diminished demand for coal.

At 5.9%, West Virginia doesn’t have close to the worst state unemployment rate. But it’s a state where many have given up trying to find a job. At 17.6%, West Virginia has the highest percentage of working-age people on disability benefits, above the national average of 10.4%, according to 2012 data.

West Virginia also has the worst rates of obesity, cancer and diabetes.

Beyond the troubled economic environment — and, in part, because of it — West Virginia also has an older population. At 41.9, West Virginia has the fourth-highest median age, according to Census Bureau data from 2013.

On the other end of the spectrum, the highest employment-to-population rate belongs to North Dakota, where a fracking revolution has drawn workers to the state.