Studying the problems of the labor market under sanctions is an urgent task, since changes in the economy inevitably affect employment, unemployment, and skill requirements for employees. The sanctions restrictions have led to the transformation of many industries, which has affected both the demand for personnel and employment opportunities. Many enterprises are facing staff cuts due to the severance of international relations and a decrease in the volume of orders. At the same time, some areas, such as manufacturing, agriculture, and IT, have begun to experience a shortage of specialists. This led to the need for rapid adaptation of the labor market to new conditions, including retraining of employees and the development of new areas of professional activity. In this regard, the purpose of the article is to systematize the problems of the labor market in Russia and St. Petersburg and its adaptation to the sanctions pressure. The objectives of the study are to identify the problems of the labor market that have developed under the influence of sanctions; to systematize successful practices of adaptation to the prevailing new conditions; to predict trends in the development of the regional labor market. As the results of the research, the article systematizes the problems of the labor market in Russia and St. Petersburg in the period from 2022 to 2024 with an analysis of the causes; based on statistical data, the directions of market adaptation to sanctions pressure from government support to natural market reactions are classified and systematized; long-term trends in the development of the labor market and threats that are formed under the influence of the adaptation politics. The labor market analysis was carried out in an industry context, with a study of effective practices of enterprises that have been successfully implemented to neutralize employment problems.