The unemployment rate in the sector is zero.
The last measurement of the Uruguayan Chamber of Information Technology (Cuti) indicated that women represent 32% of the people employed by this industry. Although it is still a minority, there has been a trend towards a reduction in the gap between male and female employment: in 2013 it was 26% and increased to 30% in 2014.
"I don't know if women are occupying more spaces in the ICT industry or if ICTs are creeping into all industries, including those with greater female participation. A universe of new applications has been generated that favour creativity and innovation in spaces that were never alien to women. Technology generates an accessibility that transcends gender and even age", reflected the member of Cuti's board of directors, Virginia Garcia-Morales.
On the other hand, for Silvia Nane, Cuti's director and software quality control specialist at make IT work, the promotion of women in the industry is giving results, although she pointed out that the results of the policies that are being carried out will be seen later on. She added that unlike the programming area, the quality control area has been historically dominated by women. The IT sector has been characterized in Uruguay for having a zero unemployment rate, being this one of its main concerns when it comes to generating initiatives that enhance its growth.
In view of this situation, Nane pointed out that "the increase in the number of women is also explained by the fact that the industry is demanding much more people and, in the absence of male human resources, women are starting to enter.
Encourage the presence
With the aim of promoting the increase of women in the industry, every year the Chamber joins initiatives such as Girls in ICT, organized by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). As part of this global event, Cuti holds "Techy for the day", an open day, dedicated exclusively to women so that, through visits, they can learn about the opportunities of the industry firsthand.
"This increase in the participation of women is very positive, but it is still necessary to leverage the growth needs of our sector, which requires more people participating in it and for this reason we must continue to make efforts so that more and more women join a sector that represents many opportunities today and in the future," explained the manager of Cuti, Andrea Mendaro.
La ejecutiva señaló que la brecha entre hombres y mujeres empleados en el sector no responde a un tema de preferencias a la hora de contratar, sino que se debe a que las carreras tecnológicas continúan siendo elegidas en su mayor parte por estudiantes del sexo masculino.
Source: The Observer
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