The University of Missouri Faculty Council recently completed a study that concluded that there was no unexplainable gender wage gap in most academic departments at the university. This conclusion was reached despite the fact that women faculty members on average make $16,000 less than their male counterparts.
However, the Faculty Council report found that the wage differences could be explained by differences in research productivity, rank, and administrative experience.
In a letter to the campus community, announcing the findings, Garnett S. Stokes, provost of the University of Missouri, said the he was pleased that “there is no evidence of systemic problems regarding salary equity.” However, he warned gender may play a role in why women had less administrative experience, were at lower academic ranks, and had lower research activity.