The Confederation of British Industry has claimed that one part of the equality bill could cause problems for business insurance holders.
Katja Hall, the group's director of human resources policy, said that the clarity and simplification which the bill provides is welcome, as it could promote more diversity inside companies, particularly at their senior levels.
However, she suggested that the proposal for business insurance customers to publish their average male and female pay could result in problems.
The expert commented: "Companies that have too few women in higher-paid roles, and are trying to attract more, could be forced to publish a statistic that would deter female applicants and compound the problem."
Furthermore, Ms Hall noted that gender pay gap statistics are open to misinterpretation, as they actually show there are fewer female-held high-paid jobs rather than comparing the pay of men and women who hold the same position.
The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) has also criticised the equality bill, saying it could have adverse consequences for the UK's business insurance holders.
David Frost, the group's director general, told the BCC's annual business convention in Birmingham that it could discourage the creation of jobs and bring in mandatory gender pay audits.
