What is your view on paid vs unpaid internships?
Read the articles on the issue of paid versus unpaid internships and write an essay (2 pages) in response to following questions:
Based on the readings and your own experience, do you believe employers make a distinction between unpaid interns and paid employees? Is this fair to interns?
Comment on the premise of the Williams article (NYT) that internships do not provide a payoff? Do you agree or disagree with this and is the situation different for public service/government internships than it is for business internships?
Lastly, do you think our system for students transitioning into the workforce is effective? What changes do you think are needed?
“Most Michigan state agencies hire unpaid interns. How does that affect struggling students?” Lansing State Journal, July 11, 2019. https://www.lansingstatejournal.com/story/news/201…
Sanburn, Josh, “The beginning of the end of unpaid internships?” May 2, 2012. http://business.time.com/2012/05/02/the-beginning-…
Parcells, Nathan, “Nonprofits: It’s time to “Lean Into” paid internships,” NPQ, October 22, 2013. http://www.nonprofitquarterly.org/management/23108…
Cook, Dan, “The interns are fighting back,” benefitspro, October 29, 2013. http://www.benefitspro.com/2013/10/29/the-interns-…
Parcells, Nathan, “The benefits of paying interns,” HR.BLR.com, October 28, 2013. http://hr.blr.com/HR-news/Staffing-Training/Employ…
Hinkes-Jones, Llewellyn, “The end of interns,” The Awl, October 24, 2013. http://www.theawl.com/2013/10/the-end-of-interns
Williams, Alex, “For Interns, All Work and No Payoff,” The New York Times, February 14, 2014. http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/16/fashion/millenni…
Solution Preview
Unpaid Internships
- Based on the readings and your own experience, do you believe employers make a distinction between unpaid interns and paid employees? Is this fair to interns?
I believe that employers do not make a distinction between paid and unpaid interns in their assignment of duties to the interning employees. However, the interns face significant strife in their places of work, which is unfair to them,
(726 words)