In 2006, he started looking for a job, after taking some time away from work to care for his elderly parents. He was 57 and had 30 years of experience under his belt. Before returning to the labor market, Stupko took some career development courses and registered with a local employment service, which sent him for an interview at a company seeking a new accountant. The posted salary was 15,000 rubles a month, and there weren’t any additional requirements listed in the job advertisement. Stupko walked out of the interview with a formal rejection, where the company had written to the employment service that he “didn’t fit the age category.” Igor Sivoldayev, the lawyer who later defended Stupko in court, says his client was also rejected for being a man: the company wanted to hire a woman.