Internships: Are you being exploited?
Internships receive a lot of bad press, however, for students and recent graduates they’re the only way to get a foot in the door.
By Genevieve Dwyer
The term ‘internship’ is undefined in Australia and it’s hard to know where the line is between experience and exploitation. There is no recognition of interns under the current labour laws, creating potential exploitation of the young and inexperienced.
Jade, a recent graduate from Monash University, tells Klementine that when she interned at a respected online magazine she was excited and looking forward to building her portfolio.
However, Jade says, “It quickly became clear that my role was to produce work that was sometimes published under another writer’s name. It sucked – but what could I do? I was only an intern!”
Jade says the experience did make her a better writer, however the expectations were unrealistic. She was expected to work up to three days a week for over six months without pay.
“Despite all this,” says Jade, “I’m still glad I did the internship. I just wish there was a reliable way to make sure interns aren’t being taken advantage of – if you’re working for free you at least deserve credit for what you’ve done!”
Eleanor Robertson, writing for the Guardian, points out that internships are common in declining industries such as media, entertainment and design.
“Qualified and desperate young people are walking dollar signs to a cash-strapped industry,” says Eleanor.
Furthermore, only 13% of internships turn into paid employment.
Frida, a communications student, was lucky enough to receive paid work after interning. She tells Klementine that she loves where she works and the people she works with; however, her internship probably crossed the line into exploitation.
“I wasn’t taught solid skills so much as picking up dribs and drabs from what was going on or needed to be done at the time. Sometimes I would work longer than the organised hours and left unsupervised doing tasks that clearly helped out the business more than my learning.”
Concerned about the lack of regulation, a non-profit organisation called ‘Interns Australia’ was established to advocate for interns. Colleen Chen, co-founder of Interns Australia, highlights that a lack of legal support means that people who find themselves in compromising positions do not have the bargaining power to change their situation.
Klementine reached out to Colleen for more information, and she provided us with a few steps for people seeking internships to avoid exploitation:
- Make sure you have a contract in place. This is to ensure there is workplace cover and any copyright/IP generated still belongs to the intern. A paper trail also covers you if legal issues arise.
- Document all the hours and tasks that are asked of you to keep your input in check. The more regular the hours of commitment, the more it will resemble an employment relationship.
- Got a problem? Speak to the employer — sometimes it’s just an oversight. If nothing changes consider calling the Fair Work Ombudsman on 13 13 94 for some advice. In serious cases, back pay and compensation may be rewarded to the intern.
- Speak to Interns Australia to explore other options regarding this issue. If legal action is not possible, Interns Australia may help provide community action or publicity campaigns.
Have you done an internship? Did you feel exploited, or did you gain valuable experience?