Here's the good news: average weekly wages in the U.S. rose 2.5 percent over the year, according to data released this week by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). As of the fourth quarter of 2009 -- the most recent period for which this kind of data is available -- workers took in an average of $942 per week, compared to $919 per week the year before.
Now the troubling news: the rise in wages is partly due to large employment declines in low-paying industries like trade, transportation and utilities, says the BLS.
Additionally, average weekly wages of roughly 67 percent of the largest U.S. counties were below the national average in the fourth quarter of 2009.
Still, in the 10 largest U.S. counties (based on 2008 annual average employment levels) the average worker made more per week at the end of 2009 than they did at the end of 2008. And, of the 334 largest counties, only 23 experienced over-the-year declines in weekly wages.
Residents of the top county pulled in an average weekly wage of $1,878 and some notoriously expensive East and West Coast cities finished high on the list.
Take a gander at the full list of highest paid U.S. counties HERE: