Women working in the finance sector earn a similar hourly rate to male nurses, despite their male contemporaries being the second-most-well paid professionals after medicos, a study has found.

The analysis of the gender pay gap using data from the entire workforce aged 25 to 60 has found that just 20 per cent of the difference can be ascribed to occupational choice – women opting for lower-paid jobs to men – while 80 per cent is explained by variations within the same occupation.