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By Alexis Grant
When are unpaid internships legal?
In an economy where companies and organizations often can't afford to hire, bringing an intern on board has become common practice. New graduates often jump at these opportunities even if the internship doesn't include a paycheck, because paid jobs that offer relevant work experience are few and far between in this struggling economy.
But how many of these opportunities are legal? When it is acceptable to "hire" an intern without pay?
[See Not Too Late to Find a Summer Job or Internship]
Unpaid internships must meet
Here's the six-point test for unpaid internships that the
-- The intern must benefit from the internship
-- The intern must receive training that's similar to what an educational environment would offer
-- The intern must not displace regular employees, but should work closely with staff
-- The employer must not derive "immediate advantage" because of the intern's work
-- The intern must not be entitled to a job afterward
-- Both the intern and the employer must agree the intern won't be paid
But critics say those criteria aren't specific enough, and that the "immediate advantage" reference raises questions. "What is an immediate advantage?" asks Mimi Collins, director of communications for the National Association of Colleges and Employers. "That's where it's a little bit vague."
Unpaid internships have long been a point of contention, with critics saying they put students who can't afford to work for free at a disadvantage. But the debate has picked up a notch during the last few years, largely because the recession has left so many young workers jobless and facing a common quandary: Work for free to gain experience, or get a paying job that doesn't necessarily bolster the resume?
That was the question before Sarah Crosbie of Haddonfield, N.J., when she couldn't
find the type of job she was looking for, working for an advocacy or lobbying group. A year and a half after graduating
from
"They're giving me a ton of experience and a ton of responsibility, so I'm happy to have that," Crosbie says. "But at the same time, it's really frustrating to not get paid for your work."
And yet, like many students eager to gain real-world smarts, Crosbie calls her internship a win-win. "I'm getting out of it what I want, and they're getting what they want," she says. "Frankly, there's so many people out there that are willing to work for free ... that businesses would be crazy to not take advantage of that."
[See Don't Settle When Choosing an Internship.]
Plenty of businesses and organizations do use that demand to their advantage. According to a recent survey by Intern Bridge, an organization that works to create paid internships across the country, 46 percent of university career centers reported more unpaid internship postings during the most recent calendar year compared with 2009-2010. About 38 percent reported more paid internship postings.
But who decides whether those unpaid internships are legal or -- to add another layer of complication -- ethical?
Most career centers leave it up to the student to determine whether an opportunity abides by the
Some universities don't support internships that aren't paid.
While
[See Why New Graduates Should Consider Entrepreneurship.]
And yet, Nykolaiszyn acknowledges that it's easy for companies to skirt around the
Of 20,000 graduating seniors who participated in a recent survey by
Available on Amazon.com:
The Best Business Schools' Admissions Secrets
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The Ethics of Unpaid Internships - When are unpaid internships legal?