Poor poor interns

The BBC has finally acknowledged that interns – or should I say, interns who are not receiving any form of payment/compensation for their work – are actually “exploited” and I couldn’t agree more.

The article states:

“We understand that some graduates may not be able to afford to take an unpaid internship which is why graduates receiving Job Seekers Allowance for six months will be able to do an unpaid internship for up to 13 weeks alongside claiming a training allowance,” a department spokesman said.

“It is the responsibility of the employer to conform to the national minimum wage and it is unacceptable to exploit people who are entitled to it.

“We take very seriously any suggestions of exploitation and have worked throughout with the TUC to give clear messages to employers about their responsibilities for internships and the national minimum wage.”Sounds quite good. A step in the right direction if you will.
But wait a minute, don’t the BBC provide work placements? Do they pay minimum wage for their enthusiastic volunteers, who, for most of the work placements at the Beeb, have been waiting months for such an opportunity?

No.

They don’t.

Bunch of hypocrits.

I am so very grateful that I am now employed, because scrounging around for work placements that I couldn’t afford to do, was a very depressing time.
And there are still thousands of graduates really trying to learn, to get their foot in the door, but not earning a penny, and digging deeper into their student debts to fund this learning curve.

Is minimum wage really too much to ask for?

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