Passage Summary: Even though every single part of the country saw pay raises last year, the average pay for the entire country actually dropped.

Reasoning: Every individual region in the country saw an increase in average hourly wages, yet the national average hourly wage decreased during the same period.

Analysis: This paradox is a classic example of a weighted average problem. For the national average to drop while every regional average rises, there must have been a significant shift in the workforce. If a large number of workers moved from high-paying regions to low-paying regions, or if low-paying regions grew much faster than high-paying ones, the total average would be pulled down. Look for an answer that describes a shift in the proportion of workers across these different regions.