Women in the IT sector: peculiarities of labor supply (based on data from the Superjob digital platform)

The article identifies and examines the challenges facing women in the IT labour market, utilising the Superjob digital job search and employment platform as a case study. The study is relevant in light of the national priorities of accelerated and large-scale digitalisation of the economy and the social sphere, the need to ensure technological sovereignty, on the one hand, and the shortage of personnel and low levels of women's participation in the IT sector, despite the high attractiveness and socio-demographic efficiency of employment in this area, on the other hand. The paper presents the findings of an empirical study conducted on the basis of downloading data (resumes and job advertisements) from the widely used digital platform Superjob. A data set comprising 4,225 resumes and 2,533 IT vacancies posted on the Russian segment of the platform was subjected to analysis. The most in-demand professions in the IT sector are identified, as well as the level of women's participation in them, differences in the wages desired by applicants and offered by employers, the claims of men and women to the level of remuneration, employment regime and opportunities for an optimal combination of family responsibilities (personal life) with work. A comparison of the data obtained in this study with the results of other researchers' studies has revealed that the imbalance in the participation of men and women in the modern and growing field of IT is still present and persistent. Furthermore, these differences are not always the result of external factors, such as employer preferences. Rather, they are often determined by latent factors, including the internal mechanisms of self-positioning of men and women in society and, in particular, in the labour market. Additionally, stereotypes and attitudes that are formed and broadcast in the family and school environment also play a role.