NATIONAL MINIMUM WAGE
CIPD calls for an end to unpaid internships
The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development has called for the introduction of a £2.50 an hour “training wage”.
CIPD research shows that more than a third (37%) of internships are currently unpaid. It argues that a new “training wage” of £2.50 an hour – which is the current minimum rate of pay for apprentices – would help reflect the contribution that an intern is likely to make to an organisation, as well as promote social mobility through encouraging people from poorer backgrounds to apply.
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The CIPD's proposed training wage would cover all interns and apprentices regardless of their occupation or industry sector. Any position that is advertised as an internship would automatically trigger a legal obligation on the part of the employer to pay at least the training wage throughout the entire duration of the internship, helping to reduce complexity surrounding the issue of payment for young people and also support better enforcement arrangements.
The CIPD says consideration should be given to the working rights for interns, for example sick pay. Discussions should take place regarding the possibility of having regional pay variations to reflect different living costs in certain parts of the country.
A final word
“The continued existence of a major loophole in the national minimum wage legislation has created a lot of confusion and concern around the issue of whether interns should be paid or not. We believe that the introduction of this training wage would reflect the contribution that interns make to their organisations, which is likely to be less than that of a fully-trained member of staff, at the same time as avoiding concerns over reductions in the number of internship opportunities that may result from all interns being paid the full minimum wage.” - Tom Richmond, Skills Adviser, CIPD.
Want to know more?
Title: Internships - To Pay or not To Pay? Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, June 2010.
Availability: To download the report in PDF format visit the CIPD web site at www.cipd.co.uk/publicpolicy/_internships-to-pay-or-not-pay0610.
The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development is “Europe’s largest HR and development professional body with over 135,000 members, supporting and developing those responsible for the management and development of people within organisations.” To find out more visit www.cipd.co.uk.