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Average Wage Index (AWI)

  Historical document  
AWI series and underlying data, 1973-84
[Number of workers in thousands; aggregate wage amounts in millions]
Year AWI series 1 SSA raw data 2 IRS raw data from income tax returns
Amount Increase Average amount Number of workers Aggregate wages Average amount Number of workers Aggregate wages
1973 $7,580.16 6.26% $1,895.04 70,555 $133,705
1974 8,030.76 5.94% 2,007.69 71,110 142,767
1975 8,630.92 7.47% 2,157.73 70,623 152,386
1976 9,226.48 6.90% 2,306.62 72,820 167,967
1977 9,779.44 5.99% 2,444.86 75,116 183,648 $10,043.15 95,004 $954,136
1978 10,556.03 7.94% 10,840.68 97,998 1,062,369
1979 11,479.46 8.75% 11,789.01 100,199 1,181,250
1980 12,513.46 9.01% 12,850.89 101,252 1,301,176
1981 13,773.10 10.07% 14,144.50 101,345 1,433,473
1982 14,531.34 5.51% 14,923.19 99,726 1,488,227
1983 15,239.24 4.87% 15,650.18 100,410 1,571,431
1984 16,135.07 5.88% [see more recent data] 16,570.17 103,297 1,711,648
1 See Actuarial Note 103 for the development of the AWI series prior to 1978.
2 Data for 1973-77 represent covered wages posted to worker's accounts during the first quarter of the year. The source of these data is IRS quarterly wage reports.
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Last reviewed or modified Thursday Oct 16, 2008
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