Response to the Report on Librarians and Gender-Based Salary Equity: University of Toronto, November 28, 2019 (PDAD&C #28) – Communications for Academic Administrators

From: Cheryl Regehr, Vice-President & Provost
Date: December 6, 2019
Re: Response to the Report on Librarians and Gender-Based Salary Equity: University of Toronto, November 28, 2019 (PDAD&C #28)

Background

In the spring of 2019, I received a report from the Provostial Advisory Group on Faculty Gender Pay Equity. This report was the product of a rigorous analysis led by U of T faculty members from the Faculty of Arts and Science Departments of Economics and Statistical Sciences, and the Rotman School of Management.

Based on the findings of that report, effective July 1, 2019, every woman faculty member who was tenured or in the tenure stream at the University of Toronto received a 1.3% increase to her June 30, 2019 base salary.

At the same time, in my administrative response, dated April 15, 2019, I committed to conducting a similar analysis for our librarian colleagues in continuing appointments.

Report on Librarian Gender-based Salary Equity

The Report on Librarians and Gender-Based Salary Equity was developed in close consultation with the Chief Librarian, Larry Alford, and through on-going discussion with the University of Toronto Faculty Association. The Report looks at all Librarians. It finds that:

On average, librarians who are women at the University of Toronto earn 3.9% less than comparably situated librarians who are men, after controlling for experience and whether or not a librarian holds a position as a Senior Administrator or Department Head. Our analysis indicates that the overall raw average difference in salary between men and women librarians of 12.8% is largely explained by the fact that women librarians at the University of Toronto have, on average, less experience and are represented at more junior ranks.

Action on Base Salary

The findings of the Report are important and will be the basis for immediate action. The University and UTFA have agreed that, retroactive to July 1, 2019, every woman Librarian at the University of Toronto will receive a 3.9% increase to her July 2, 2019 base salary.

Future Steps

The Office of Faculty & Academic Life will undertake a periodic review and analysis of continuing faculty salaries and the salaries of Librarians to confirm that the measures in place continue to support gender-based equity, and that gender-based pay gaps do not reappear over time. At the same time, UTFA and the University Administration have agreed “to establish a joint working group to explore issues that may affect the compensation of librarians who are members of equity seeking groups, including those who identify as women, Indigenous, racialized, LGBTQ2, non-binary and persons with disabilities.”

I want to take this opportunity to thank the colleagues who conducted this analysis on Librarian Gender-Based Salary Equity and the Office of Faculty & Academic Life for their hard work on this important issue. I am deeply grateful for their scholarly expertise, their evidence-based approach, and most of all, their dedication to academic excellence and gender equity at the University of Toronto.