As a history PhD-er, I’m pretty up for seeing something I co-set up become history before my very eyes…as our Policy-Officer-Hero-of-the-Hour, Joseph Thomas says, ‘I never doubted whether we were culturally significant. I think this warrants a blog post’.

If you’re reading this, future researcher, you can imagine me sitting in a cafe writing this, imagining you reading this.

Rosy Rickett

Of course we’re really pleased with these guidelines because they support the idea that NMW regulations should apply to all potential workers, including unpaid interns. The guidance is comprehensive and includes tests which employers can do themselves to work out when they should or shouldn’t be paying the NMW to their staff. NMW regulations and the definition of intern or worker are often characterised as confusing but we hope that these legal tests will provide some clarity to employers who are genuinely not sure whether they are obliged to pay their interns.

As the TUC has stated and as the evidence submitted to the Low Pay Commission this year has reinforced:

The growing misuse of interns is becoming one of the biggest abuses of the minimum wage.

And by consequence, the TUC adds,

It’s good to see the government finally taking this issue seriously, and it’s essential that today’s guidance is used by young people to ensure that they get paid what they are due.

So what’s the caveat? Guidelines and the law need to be both publicised and reinforced. So firstly, we’d like to promote these guidelines far and wide- but also see the government doing the same (we know there have been a lot of cuts to communications budgets but what’s the point of publishing guidelines if no one reads them?) Secondly, as the TUC has stated, rules mean nothing without the necessary reinforcement- so, for example, the Pay and Work rights helpline needs to be able to follow up complaints and persistent offenders need to be investigated.

The Home Office were allegedly employing 20 interns while making staff redundant.

This situation is not new and has been happening across every industry since we set up this blog. The first example we heard of was a commercial art gallery which sacked its lowest level of staff and gave their unpaid interns all their responsibilities.

The interns working for the Home Office were working in the UK’s main office for immigration and asylum enquiries.

HAT TIP – People Management magazine

Two things to say about these articles. One, we haven’t had this level of graduate unemployment since 1993. In 2010 there are more graduates in total, so higher actual numbers of graduates are unemployed than in 1993.  Two, unpaid interns are probably not included in that figure because they cannot claim JSA. 

With unemployment, unpaid internships and soon to be bank-breaking tuition fees does anyone else think that a mass exodus is on the cards? What’s the best way of avoiding the curse of the student loan? Get out of the UK…