UK working on guidelines about intern wages

Interns Anonymous has a potential scoop that’s quite interesting: HMRC (Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs – the British IRS, the Revenue Department) would be about to address directly internships as part of the wage regulations.

This is not about making unpaid internships illegal, or at least it does not seem to be. They are already illegal, if they do not meet certain criteria. But it may bring a clarity to the regulations that will make them harder to avoid.

What if interns went on strike?

Elizabeth Daley has this provocative article for her article in the Christian Science Monitor. Unfortunately, she does not explore the theme much further. It would have been nice to have some figures, somes estimates, some testimony of employers who have unpaid interns. Still, the intention is good and the points are relevant. And there’s this suggestion:

My philosophy is this: If you don’t pay me, I will not work. I encourage you to join me.

A spontaneous coordination of labor without organization except for an aricle in the Monitor may not be enough. Enforcing the existing laws would be a start.

Low-Paid Interns: The NYT Misses the Point

Disappointing article in the New York Times about the rise of “low-paid internships.” It just goes to show, once more, how such a widespread, illegal and unfair practice is ignored by the media. Thankfully, most of the readers’ comments are right on. Popular awareness is increasing. This is an issue waiting to explode.

Using Craigslist against unfair internships

Nice idea.

I will personally flag any and all companies seeking unpaid interns.

Fire at will!

The Unpaid Revolution

When an article starts with:

A revolution is coming. And it will not be funded. At least for now. Who’s going to revolt? Unpaid interns.

… you know it’s going to be good.

Juliette Dannas-Feeney gets it right more than once in the GW Hatchet. Some examples:

Unfortunately, there’s sometimes a fine line between unpaid internships and slave labor.

Unpaid internships like these are the elephants in the room.

While this blog has shown little interest in the issue of “boring internships”, Juliette brings a fair point about them:

In other words, the work I do at my internship cannot benefit the company or the way it runs its business in any way. According to these criteria, it’s essentially illegal for me to file papers, organize a co-worker’s calendar, or deliver mail.

Indeed, if the internship is unpaid, how can it be legal if it consists of administrative work?

Let’s hope that this article will light a spark at George Washington University.

Young, talented and working for free: the video

They had a great idea over at InternsAnonymous.co.uk: a series of interviews about internships.

It’s time to put a few faces on the issue, to make it more real and personal. Let’s hope there will be some more of these videos.

Follow legal rules when hiring unpaid interns

The title of this article from TechRepublic is nothing new to this blog and shouldn’t surprise anyone who lives in a lawful society. Now, it may surprise people who live in countries that shall remain nameless.

Since we’ve covered the fact that the law does not allow for free labor a few times, here’s a selection of recommendations that on which we haven’t insisted yet.

Decide beforehand if the business has the time and personnel to closely supervise and mentor an unpaid intern.

Wait a second, some may say, an intern will take time and staff? Yes, and more than it will provide labor. An internship is a training that a company is offering, not free help that it is receiving. Now this:

When in doubt, businesses can avoid legal problems by paying interns at least minimum wage.

Isn’t it cool: minimum wage will get a company out of trouble! Quite cheap. But it’s really a minimum. If a company needs staff to do something productive that adds to the bottom line, why not offer a fair pay?

Using Facebook against unfair internships

There’s a Facebook group called “Interns Must Be Paid The Minimum Wage” started in the UK but that really applies to any country where unfair internships are prevalent, sometimes despite laws against them. There are some interesting debates going on. Their goal is to get the attention of the British Parliament and their rationale is sound:

It’s a basic principle that no career path should be closed, whatever our parents’ backgrounds. It is an even more basic principle that people doing work should be paid for it.

And Phil Willis, British Member of Parliament, also put together his own Facebook group, Campaign for Fair Parliamentary Internships, to support his campaign in favor of fair internships at Westminster, for politicians should set an example (following the law would already be a nice first step). It’s encouraging that he seems to be really serious about this issue.

Parliament of all places should be able to set the example, and be accessible to all, regardless of financial background.

Join these groups if you agree with them and, even if you don’t, join the debate.

UK: FAQ about Internships and Minimum Wage

Great document put together by the UK Department for Business Innovation & Skills: Internships and National Minimum Wage – Frequently Asked Questions. The answers do not surprise us the slightest.

Does it matter what I call the internship/job? Whether someone is entitled to the national minimum wage depends on the actual circumstances of the arrangement, not the title given to the job or the role.

As they say in the UK: What’s in a name?

They make an interesting distinction between “worker” and “volunteer”.

If you have a contract of employment then you are a worker. (…) A volunteer does not have any form of contract of employment or contract to perform work or provide services.

And before any employer think they have found the loophole, note that “the contract does not need to be written”.

This is an argument that always puzzle me: interns are paid in work experience. Who doesn’t gain work experience through their job? How does that cancel the need to pay an employee? The BIS does not tiptoe around the issue when asked whether someone who is doing work experience needs to be paid:

Someone who enters into an agreement or contract to work for experience will be a “worker” for national minimum wage purposes and entitled to be paid the national minimum wage in the normal way, unless they are a genuine volunteer or fall into one of the groups who are exempt.

And very importantly, they provide guidance on how to report an unfair internship in the UK:

If someone thinks they are a “worker” and not being paid the national minimum wage, they can ring the Pay and Work Rights Helpline on 0800 917 2368 (Text phone 0800 121 4042). The Helpline is open from 8 am to 8 pm (Monday to Friday) and 9am to 1pm on Saturdays.

Please do.

UK Parliament urged to respect interns

A British political party has taken the side of interns:

Parliament should “set the standard for the rest of the nation” on the treatment of interns, Phil Willis has said.The Liberal Democrat MP’s comments came as around 100 interns, MPs and lobbyists gathered in Parliament on Monday night to demand an end to the abuse of “generation intern”.

This is good news.

David Willetts told the event: “I can sense this is the start of a movement, it feels like an uprising.”

Let’s hope so.