London - A woman would have to work until the age of nearly 80 to earn the same amount of money as a man by the age of 65 for doing the same job, a damning investigation reveals.
Experts said the figures paint “a depressing picture” of the treatment of women in the workplace, many of whom are unaware male colleagues earn so much more.
The report, from the Chartered Management Institute, investigated the salaries of 68 000 managers in the UK, ranging from junior managers to chief executives.
It was assumed that the man and woman both started work at the age of 20, worked full-time in comparable roles throughout their careers.
They found that by the age of 65, the average male manager has earned a total basic salary of £1.7-million – but a woman would have to work until the age of 79 to earn the same amount of money, according to the report published jointly with the pay research firm XpertHR.
And the CMI’s report did not take into account women taking time off for maternity leave or to raise their children.
Gloria De Piero, the shadow minister for women and equalities, said the figures painted ‘a depressing picture for women who want to get ahead in their careers.’
Up to the age of 35, the pay gap is relatively small, but widens dramatically as women get older.
For those in the 46 to 60 age bracket, the gap is 34 percent before peaking at 35 percent for workers over the age of 60 – an average of nearly £17 000 more a year.
Ann Francke, chief executive of the CMI, warned lower levels of pay for women “cannot be justified”.
She said: “Women and men should be paid on the basis of their performance in their particular roles, but this is clearly not yet the case for far too many.” - Daily Mail