The software sector in Argentina employs more than 140,000 people, with above-average wages and working conditions. The enjoyment of this dynamism is not equitable. The sector maintains a low female participation, with only 30% of women in mostly functional or administrative jobs, compared to the better paid technical roles occupied by men. This responds to a chain of segregation that begins in education and persists in the workplace. Promoting the dynamic development of the software sector requires building a new policy agenda that is more finely tuned to its needs and challenges. To drive a more diverse, representative and sustainable industry, it is essential to stimulate the sustainable insertion of women and transgender people in software production processes.
Illustration: Micaela Nanni.
A dynamic sector but not for all
Argentina’s software and IT services sector is extremely dynamic. It exports USD 2.4 billion annually, ranking sixth, behind only traditional complexes such as the soybean, cereal and oil sectors. It employs more than 140,000 registered workers and pays wages on average 86% higher than the private sector average. But the enjoyment of this dynamism is not equitable. Women account for just over 30% of jobs, a figure that has remained virtually unchanged over the last two decades.
The sector was not born male-dominated. Women were pioneers in the development of IT and the work does not require traditionally male attributes, such as physical strength. However, barriers persist that segregate women in lower-demand, lower-paying roles, such as functional areas, while men dominate the more dynamic and prestigious technical roles.
Addressing this disparity would not only benefit women, but also leverage the competitiveness of the sector through diverse work teams. To do so, it is necessary to understand the dynamics of segregation that shape “male” and “female” occupations in the sector and imply unequally distributed opportunities for participation, growth and well-being.
Fewer women in jobs and in the classroom
Gender employment gap
The modest female participation in software is not a phenomenon unique to our country, nor is it unique to the sector. The percentage of women in this industry is close to the average for private employment, above historically male-dominated industries, such as mining.
However, if we look at its evolution over time, the level of female participation in the sector has remained constant since 1996. This stagnation contrasts with the evolution of private employment in general, which increased by 6 percentage points in the last 25 years. And it is striking if we take into account the strong expansion after the enactment of the Software Industry Promotion Law in 2004.
Gender gap in education
Women also represent a minority in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) subjects and particularly in Computer Science. Of all undergraduate students, the percentage of male students in these subjects is almost three times that of their female counterparts (32% versus 12%). The disparity is even greater when we focus on computer science degrees (9.5% versus 1.4%). This was not always the case. During the 1960s and 1970s, UBA’s computer science programme had two-thirds or more women students.
Female trajectories, male trajectorie
Despite the take-off and dynamism that the sector has shown, for decades women have occupied 3 out of 10 registered jobs. A chain of segregation affects women’s trajectories in software production, limiting their access to higher salaries, their possibilities of advancement and permanence within the industry. This chain of segregation begins in childhood, continues at university, is reflected in the different positions they occupy when they enter the sector and deepens throughout their professional lives.
Distribution of roles. Women more administrative, men more technical
Female and male profiles are asymmetrically inserted in the occupational structure. Women are concentrated in administrative activities and men in software development activities, which are more in demand, better paid and of higher status. This creates “masculine” and “feminine” occupations that give rise to a stereotyped division of labour within the sector.
In turn, the accumulation of men in higher paid technical roles fuels the gender pay gap, which stands at 20%. This figure is equivalent to the private sector average, although strikingly wider than in other historically male-dominated industries, such as manufacturing (12%) or mining (18%).
Skills endowment. They are more qualified, they are more specialised
Women report a lower level of computer skills and tools and a higher range of “soft” skills. This explains why, despite having more qualifications (in number and years of educational experience), their participation in core production is reduced. The larger and broader endowment of “soft” skills strengthens women’s employability, but locks them into “female” occupations (Quality, Analysis, Design and Management). Their generally more limited mastery of computer tools limits their ability to occupy programming-intensive technical positions.
Moreover, as we have seen, women are few among those pursuing computer science degrees. Although a degree is not a precondition for access to the sector, the lower level of computer science education is a barrier to building seniority, facing job transitions, participating in highly complex projects or protecting oneself from the speed of technological change.
Labour mobility. Women migrate into the sector, men move up.
If we look at how fast workers in the sector change jobs, we see that the pace is no different between women and men: on average 6 jobs every 10 years. Things change when we focus on occupations. The most dynamic positions tend to be in the technical activities of Development and Data, which are also the most male-dominated.
Growth in the sector is driven by the accumulation of experience, professional visibility and knowledge of specific business models or products, all attributes in which men are better positioned. Unequal participation in production processes offers greater opportunities for mobility to male profiles than to female profiles.
Women’s mobility comes from non-computerised sectors and knowledge. Women’s trajectories are less linear. To enter the sector, they are able to capitalise on their training in disciplines oriented towards art, literature, communication, research and design. But the same mobility that allows them to move into software production also strengthens their insertion and greater participation in functional, more static roles.
Recommendations for coding equity in the software industry
The software sector has great potential for growth and can become an engine for national economic development. To achieve this, it is necessary to promote gender equity in its production processes, which implies breaking down barriers that limit women’s access to production processes. By creating more equitable working conditions, the software industry can make better use of human talent, respond to the growing demand for employment and build a solid foundation for sustainable development. To achieve this, we propose three main lines to consider.
1. Develop a sectoral roadmap towards equity
Overcoming gender segregation requires building a common work horizon and strengthening commitments, capacities and cooperation mechanisms with the effective participation of actors.
Key strategies
- Involve communities, networks or associations of women and diversities in the sector in the design of policies, in order to multiply their scope and impact.
- Territorialise measures with the contributions of chambers, poles and local technology clusters, in order to adapt them to social realities or production needs, share resources and take advantage of institutional links.
- Systematise the educational offer, diagnose occupational maps and generate gender statistics, in order to monitor progress in a coordinated manner and adjust policies as necessary.
2. Mainstreaming the gender perspective in productive development policies oriented to the software sector
We propose to mainstream gender in all policies and practices that guide the growth of the sector. This means ensuring that decisions, programmes and resources allocated to the industry consider and respond to the specific needs and challenges faced by women and diversities.
Key strategies
- Stimulate the adoption of organisational changes among companies in the sector, through the dissemination of the differential bonus of the promotion regime, the enforcement of Decree 144/2022 and the certification of occupational quality standards.
- Establish equity objectives in all productive development plans, ensuring that resources are allocated to reduce gender segregation in training programmes, financing or development of IT solutions.
- Assess gender impacts. Measure how initiatives affect men, women and diversities, identifying possible inequalities that may arise.
3. Train new female profiles and strengthen the profiles already inserted in the sector.
La idea es tanto atraer a más mujeres a la industria, sobre todo en roles técnicos demandados y bien remunerados, como también potenciar las trayectorias de aquellas que ya trabajan en sus procesos productivos.
Key strategies
- Create training and technical certification programmes for women in key skills such as programming, data science and cybersecurity, ensuring that they can access in-demand and well-paid technical roles.
- Stimulate women’s computer science vocations. In addition to ensuring the participation of girls and young women in STEM from early educational stages, disseminate information among students of feminised careers susceptible to technological adaptation.
- Support the retraining and technical specialisation of female workers in the sector. This involves offering scholarships for postgraduate studies or participating in impact projects, as well as bringing formal educational opportunities to women trained in courses.
- Establish mentoring, professional support and labour intermediation networks where women can share experiences, strengthen leadership skills and receive professional guidance.
