The lady’s not for interning

I want to share an anecdote with you that opens a conversation about a topic I have very mixed thoughts on: unpaid internships. I recently saw a post on Facebook by an acquaintance looking for an intern to help with marketing for their shop. I then had a message from an ex-colleague who had applied for this internship and was looking for a reference for her potential new ‘employer’. I’d met this colleague – let’s call her Emily – when she had worked with Brighton Fashion Week 2012 as an intern. I had, with our team, guided her in new media development. Emily had come to us with limited skills in this area, after a decade spent raising two beautiful children, and had left as an accomplished web editor after putting in many hours of her own valuable time away from her children. The result was a flourishing website and a successful event which both parties benefited from. Emily has expanded her already excellent skill-set, but a few months down the line is still struggling to find relevant work. Not an unusual story at present.

I said to her that I thought her skills were now developed beyond that which an internship with this particular shop could offer her, and if she was going to do another internship she should look for something offering to teach skills she doesn’t have. After all, isn’t the idea of an internship to exchange skills for time? Nevertheless, she went along to the interview and they, unsurprisingly, jumped at the chance to take her on. Before she started Emily wrote to me again, saying that part of this internship would be to serve in the shop. Hang on a minute, what was it Emily was getting for her time? Unpaid drudgery? Anyone out there willing to do shop work for free? No? Me neither.

I advised her that if she was expected to do this work she should expect at least a minimum wage, and could then offer to do the PR and social media on top, during quiet times on the shop floor. Good deal both ways; Emily got a bit of much needed cash, and the shop owner filled two roles. The deal was struck and Emily began working. However, after a week Emily was fired because she didn’t bring her own laptop to work on.

So, not only was this ‘employer’ expecting the PR work (that I know she’d previously paid for) and the shop work for free, she was also expecting to be able to further exploit Emily’s own resources.

Now, I’m no expert on the subject of legislation regarding interning, but I’m pretty sure this is not only immoral and exploitative, but illegal. In November 2011 it was revealed that HMRC were planning to clamp down on intern exploitation in the fashion industry, which was deemed ‘high risk’. Chains like Urban Outfitters, Topshop and even good old Vivienne Westwood were called into question regarding their interning policy, so there is movement afoot in this area. And before you point it out, I’m aware that in using the words ‘exploitation’ and ‘fashion’ in the same column, many will think, quite rightly, of sweatshops in India et al. But I’m talking about relative exploitation within the context of our economy here in Great Britain.

“We’ve got to start paying people for a job done…that’s how it works”

The scenario I’ve outlined raises the question, why did Emily think this was ok? Why is her professional confidence so low that she would agree to this absurd arrangement? I think it may have something to do with the fact that so many are doing it. The intern culture is out of control, especially in new media, which is in a state of flux regarding monetisation. Furthermore it’s utterly unhelpful to the economy. We’ve got to start paying people for a job done, or offer them skills and experience in return for time; that’s how it works.

Having said all this however, I’ve done internships and I’ve taken on and trained interns. I’m even looking for volunteers at the moment to write for the new ‘She Said’ blog. In my experience it’s proved to be fun and helpful, and most importantly, it’s helped me get paid jobs in my chosen field. But it’s always been fair, because I’ve made sure of it. Our unemployed youth have clearly had the confidence knocked out of them to the extent that they can’t judge the good from the bad any longer and that indicates a need for support in this area.

I’d like to remind the young that are looking for work to value themselves enough to demand a fair exchange of skills for time when entering internships. I’d like to further remind them that in this day and age, the power is in their hands. They have the digital skills engrained, that the older generations are fighting to keep on top of. Lastly, I’d very much like to hear thoughts on the subject from those who no doubt know much more than I.

For more on this conversation try looking at: www.internsanonymous.co.uk