Charity internships scrutinised

Working for voluntary organisations will become the preserve of a wealthy elite unless charities stop exploiting unpaid interns, warns a new report.

Interns in the voluntary sector — time to end exploitation, has been released by general union Unite, and Intern Aware, an organisation campaigning for fair, paid internships and against exploitation.

The report reveals that more than a third of the top 50 charity employers in England and Wales did not pay their interns.

It says the practice of unpaid internships in the third sector “breeds elitism”, providing “guaranteed access to jobs for those who can afford to work for free”.

Unite national officer for the not-for-profit sector Sally Kosky, and Intern Aware’s co-director Gus Baker, said: “The UK is at risk of creating a society that discriminates against those who are unable to intern for free for long periods of time.

“With the majority of national charities and voluntary organisations based in London, those who cannot afford the spiralling rents in the capital can’t get the opportunities that they deserve.”

The report calls for structured, paid internships and training schemes, on the grounds that they are better for young people and better value for employers.

It wants to see an end to unpaid internships in the third sector; for interns to be paid the National Minimum Wage (currently £6.19 an hour for those over 21); and for the re-introduction of paid entry level jobs to expand the social diversity of job applicants.

www.unitetheunion.org/uploaded/documents/internaware11-10536.pdf