Pay and Productivity Differences between Male and Female Veterinarians

The author uses data from annual wage surveys conducted in 1994 and 1995 by Medical Economics Research Group to study differences in pay and productivity between male and female veterinarians in the wage-salary sector. The gender gap in average earnings was 15%. When controls for various observable characteristics are added to the analysis, the earnings gap narrows to 9%, based on the most conservative estimates. Using unique revenue production measures in an analysis holding other factors constant, the author finds that women's productivity was not statistically different from men's. Together, the findings of gender differences in earnings but not in productivity are consistent with the presence of wage discrimination, but the author explores other possible explanations as well