MORE of the area’s major employers have revealed the scale of the pay gap between men and women.

All employers with more than 250 staff should now have published details of the gulf.

The Daily Echo reported yesterday that Bournemouth Airport’s main airline Ryanair had a median pay rate 71.8 per cent lower for women than men. At JP Morgan, the gap was 29 per cent, for LV= it was 23.5 per cent, and at Nationwide it was 31 per cent.

In the latest figures, Bournemouth-based retirement developer McCarthy & Stone has revealed a 30.1 per cent pay gap in its McCarthy & Stone Retirement Lifestyles business and 4.1 per cent at McCarthy & Stone Management Services.

It said: “We are confident that our pay and bonus gaps, where they occur, are based on the distribution of men and women across the different levels of our business and not because of our pay policies, which are robust, fair and consistent.”

It said it was working to increase the number of women at senior levels.

Poole’s global cosmetics brand Lush revealed that women’s pay is 2.6 per cent lower at Lush Manufacturing and 5.1 per cent lower at Lush Retail.

It said it was working to provide equal opportunities for career progression but that government, education and business all needed to play their part in addressing the fact that many women work in part-time, lower paid roles. “Only by understanding what creates the female pay gap will there ever be a chance to close it,” the company said.

Engineering and aerospace firms showed some of the biggest gulfs. In the Wimborne-headquartered Cobham group, there was a 19 per cent gap at Flight Refuelling, 30 per cent at FB Heliservices, 26 per cent at Chelton and 24 per cent at FR Aviation.

“Encouraging more women into STEM subjects and careers will be critical to meeting the challenge of building a diverse workforce and accessing the widest available talent pool,” Cobham said.

In the same sector, Penny & Giles Controls Ltd had a 38.3 per cent pay gap, AIM Aviation (Henshalls) 21.8 per cent, AIM Altitude 17.6 per cent, Meggitt (UK) Ltd 23.5 per cent, Meggitt Aerospace Ltd 21.4 per cent and Magellan Aerospace 17.5 per cent.

Siemens PLC, which employs 500 people at Poole, had a 22.2 per cent gap.

Luxury boat builder Sunseeker and car dealership chain Westover were among the minority of employers who pay women more than men on average.

Sunseeker’s median hourly pay was 0.7 per cent more for women than men.

The company said it was working to recruit more women, especially to its graduate and apprenticeship programmes.

Bournemouth-based Westover reported pay 22 per cent higher for women at Westover Group Ltd and 30 per cent higher at Westover Holdings.

It said: “The automotive industry has a long history of male-dominated roles. However, with Westover’s 22 showrooms we are able to offer a large variety of roles. Whilst all positions are not gender specific, within this industry our male employees vastly outweigh our females.”

The Bournemouth-based Tops Day Nurseries chain also paid women more than men on average, by 0.2 per cent.

Yesterday, the Daily Echo revealed that paint and wallpaper maker Farrow & Ball paid women 8.8 per cent more than men, while BH Live – which runs Bournemouth council’s entertainment and leisure venues – had a pay gap of 4.8 per cent in women’s favour.

Among other well-known local names required to declare their pay gaps were: Weymouth-based New Look, 20.9 per cent; Amigo Management Services, which trades as Amigo Loans, 12.7 per cent; Haskins, 8.2 per cent; Hobbycraft, 4.9 per cent; and Thai Tapas Restaurants, four per cent.