Unpaid Interns: Silent No More

[n2doc]

By ROSS PERLIN
Published: July 20, 2013

MAKE no mistake, the interns are fighting back.

Last month, a federal judge in New York ruled that unpaid interns on the movie “Black Swan” should have received at least the minimum wage. The judge also allowed a class-action suit to go forward against the Fox Entertainment Group, the parent company of the film’s production division.

Gutsy and improbable when it was first filed two years ago, the “Black Swan” case was a pioneering direct challenge to the internship system. Now more than 15 other lawsuits have followed in its wake, according to an online database maintained by ProPublica, the investigative journalism Web site.

The companies being sued operate in a wide range of intern-heavy industries. Global brands, famous television and fashion personalities, multinational subsidiaries flush with profits — these are some of the employers that have refused to pay young workers at least $7.25 an hour. How have they done this for so long?

The federal law is clear: if internships at profit-making companies are to be unpaid, they must foster an educational environment. (The rules are different for nonprofit and governmental agencies.)

more

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/21/jobs/unpaid-interns-silent-no-more.html

[Curmudgeoness]

1. When will they decide that slavery is dead????

The Dickens-like apprenticeships, serfs, bond servants, and slaves are illegal. And yes, I have heard all about how it is not slavery, since interns are not "owned" and are not "forced" to work as unpaid interns. I also know that in some businesses, it is practically impossible to get a job without first having done an internship---and these are often the unpaid internships.

I get so angry when I think about people in this era, in this country, working for companies for no money.

[DotGone]

3. It's practically all professions now that require an internship

If you leave school w/o an internship, you're basically screwed these days. Employers assume all sorts of shit about you because of it. No internship = lazy, unmotivated, unambitious, not dedicated, dumb, etc...Then there's that must have 2+ years experience to get an entry level job bullshit.

[mecherosegarden]

2. I completed a year of Practicum

and a year of Pre-doctoral without getting any income. No stipend, nothing.
I am looking for a Post Doctoral and so far only jobs with some Stipend because I need to get my hours for licensure. I can't afford another year without earning income.