Hope: Women and equalities minister Nicky Morgan (pictured) said the move would encourage firms to reward all staff equally

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Women workers should demand their bosses give them the same wages as male staff, a minister said as she unveiled details of new ‘gender pay gap’ league tables.

All companies with more than 250 staff are to be forced to reveal what they pay men and women, including any differences, from April next year.

The first tables, letting staff compare their company’s wages with rivals, will be published on firms’ websites in 2018.

Women and equalities minister Nicky Morgan said the move would encourage firms to reward all staff equally. She added: ‘I’m calling on women across Britain to use their position as employees and consumers to demand more from businesses.’

The 8,000 firms affected will be divided into different industries and as well as highlighting the average gap between staff wages of men and women, employers will also have to detail any bonuses they pay.

The information will be divided into quarters to show salary gaps between the top 25 per cent of staff and their less well-paid colleagues, exposing firms dominated by male bosses but with more women in junior roles.

Business groups warned the data could be misleading and risked becoming ‘box-ticking’.

Official figures suggest the gender pay gap is at its lowest level – less than 10 per cent – since records began, and only two per cent for full-time workers under the age of 40. Women aged 22 to 29 and 30 to 39 earn more than male counterparts. Mrs Morgan said she hoped the moves would secure ‘real equality’.

‘We’ve seen the best employers make ground-breaking strides in tackling gender inequality. But the job won’t be complete until we see the talents of women and men recognised equally and fairly in every workplace.

‘I am announcing a raft of measures to support women in their careers from the classroom to the boardroom, leaving nowhere for gender inequality to hide. At the same time I’m calling on women across Britain to use their position as employees and consumers to demand more from businesses, ensuring their talents are given the recognition and reward they deserve.’

Ministers want to encourage 15,000 more girls to study maths and sciences by 2020, a 20 per cent rise on current numbers.

Bonus: The 8,000 firms affected will be divided into different industries and as well as highlighting the average gap between staff wages of men and women, employers will also have to detail bonuses they pay (file image)

Some business groups warned publishing pay league tables could make the problem worse by putting women off careers that seem male-dominated.

Dianah Worman, of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, said they could ‘disincentivise’ women from science, technology, engineering and maths where they were ‘already seriously under-represented’. She claimed ‘naming and shaming’ firms could also hinder meaningful change.

Carolyn Fairbairn, director general of the CBI, urged ministers ‘to ensure that this new legislation helps close the gender pay gap, rather than ending up as a box-ticking exercise’.