Half of women in the IT industry believe they're not paid as much as men.

A survey by UK hi-tech industry trade body Intellect found that six in ten women believe their firm does not have a transparent pay structure providing clarity on matters such as how salaries, bonuses, and perks are awarded.

Two thirds of the 433 women surveyed said they didn't know if their company carried out an equal pay audit.

Intellect says this is just one of the reasons the IT sector is still struggling to recruit women to work in the industry and has called on the sector to work together to help address these issues.

Intellect Women in IT forum chair Gillian Arnold said: "Whether the pay gap is perceived or real, it is something which will make women act.

"If a woman believes that her salary is less than that of her peers, for the same work and experience, then she will be prompted to look elsewhere.

"Current thinking suggests that transparency on salaries and benefits packages can help enormously and can avoid unnecessary publicity and legal fees," she said.

Last October, official government stats found that women IT managers are still paid less that men although the gap was narrowing. ®