Paying for internships: Turning experience into a commodity
Is experience a commodity that can be bought and sold? What are the concerns if young people start having to pay for their internships?
There was much debate over the summer surrounding unpaid internships: Who benefits most from them – intern or employer? Are they ethical? What about legal?
Some argued that they exclude those who can’t afford to work for free — the types of people already underrepresented in the media. Others argued that the experience gained and contacts made through internships are worth the tireless work and multiple jobs that are sometimes needed to support them.
But what about arrangements that are backwards of pretty much any typical employment contract?
That is what is going on in this BBC story that tells of a company that matches potential employers with interns who are willing to pay for their experience — Some paying up to £100 per day.
"It is essential that you have that experience but it's just the way things are these days – nothing is for free,” Roz Tuplin, who paid £260 for a four-day work experience placement in a TV production company, told BBC.
Is that true? Is experience really a service that can be bought and sold, just like any other commodity?
Let us know what you think in the comments below or tweet us @jsource.
