Claudine Reid MBE, who's been voted one of Britain's Top 100 Most Entrepreneurial Women by Real Business Magazine and runs an award-winning social enterprise, was speaking after a think tank found the pay gap between men and women in their 30s and 40s almost doubled.
The Resolution Foundation found that in their 20s, the difference between men and women's pay was five per cent.
This went up to nine per cent when both groups reached their 30s and 40s - an age where women are more likely to be mothers.
The think tank called the gap a "pay penalty" on women who choose to have children.
Reid acknowledged that gender pay gap statistics could be misleading, as many women who become mothers choose to work part-time to accommodate their family. Part-time work is, on average, paid less than full-time work.
However speaking on Premier's News Hour, she said: "Women want to be judged or paid based on their merit, based on the contribution that they're bringing to any organisation.
"It's very unfair to have a woman being paid less than her male counterparts for doing exactly the same type of work.
"When we look at child-bearing age and we look at part-time roles... what we want is equality across the board on all levels."
Listen to Premier's Aaron James speaking to Claudine Reid MBE on the News Hour:
