London, Jan 31 (IANS): An independent report published on Tuesday that was commissioned by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) found there was no gender bias when it came to the salaries of the organisation's employees.

BBC Director General Tony Hall announced the conclusion of the investigation, which was carried out by audit firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) amid a controversy surrounding the corporation after the China Editor Carrie Gracie resigned from her post in protest over unequal pay between men and women at the BBC.

Hall said the organisation believed in equality and the report did not find evidence of gender bias in decision-making, but it showed there were real and important issues to tackle, Efe reported.

However, the review also found that the BBC's approach to setting pay in general "has been far from perfect".

Hall noted BBC was addressing unfairness in individuals' pay and wanted to close the gender gap and have women in half of their on-air roles by 2020.

The BBC said it will take action that involves substantial pay cuts for some men, and pay rises for some men and women.

Meanwhile, a group of 170 women who work for the BBC demanded an apology, as well as back pay and pension adjustments in compensation.