Essay on No Pay, No Support: The Reality of Unpaid Internships

Central Idea

Large companies and organizations do not pay their interns or offer any kind of support to enable them to be comfortable during the internship period. In order to facilitate the interns to have the support that they require during the internship, the need to be supported financially through payment.

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I. Introduction

A. Gain audience attention

Ladies and gentlemen, internship payment, is a significant concern for students and companies that offer internship opportunities to students after the completion of their studies where they get the experience and opportunity to apply skills learned in school.

B. Direct audience to need

We all need to understand the importance of paying the interns based on the challenges they face and the benefits that come when interns get paid.

Ladies and gentlemen, would you like to be paid when doing an internship to facilitate their needs and be able to provide your services to the companies? Internship payment is key to ensuring that interns are comfortable during their internship period. Interns need to be paid to facilitate the daily life needs that they require to live a comfortable life.

C. Central Idea

There is no clear law that guides companies and organizations on whether to pay students on internships. Companies need to reconsider their decision of internship payment and come up with a budget to enable them to pay their interns.

D. Credibility

Having researched on the labor laws and researched how why the interns do not get paid, I have concluded that companies gain more by paying their interns. The speech focuses on the findings of my research and the proposal of how intern payment needs to be solved.

E. Preview

The speech focuses on the challenges intern face and how the payment will help them cope with the challenges. I will discuss the challenges faced by the interns, why they need to be paid and the results of the payment of the interns.

II. BODY

I. Problem Step

Problem:

“Michael Gaynor, of Washington Post, in an article entitled, 43 Percent of Internships at For-Profit Companies Don’t Pay. This Man Is Helping to Change that” reported that 43 percent of profit companies do not pay the interns". The students, therefore, face financial challenges during the period. Imagine having come out of college and starting an internship in a place far from your home. You have to pay the house bills, transport to work, food, clothes and medication. If you cannot work for free, then you are denied a chance of harnessing your skills.

1. Explanation

The disadvantages of not paying interns are clear as the costs incurred during the internship sessions are not considered. The students who are not financially stable are, therefore, disadvantaged, and even those who can afford are not motivated.

a. Support

Unpaid internships are disadvantageous to the students who cannot afford to work for free since there are many costs incurred during this period. “Lawton, Kayte, and Dom Potter in their article entitled, “Why interns need a fair wage," reports that interns need a fair wage to cater for their costs." The costs include relocation costs, which may be extremely high, depending on the state you are relocating to. Housing is another cost that you will incur if the company does not offer housing stipend. If you consider staying in student dorms, the cost is also high and unaffordable for students coming from financially unstable families. The cost of the dorm at Columbia University, for example, is approximately $ 3350 for ten weeks. Transport is another cost that you cannot avoid, and if you are interning in a big city like New York, the cost is high.

b. Support

"Derek Thompson, of the Atlantic, in an article entitled "Unpaid Internships: Bad for Students, Bad for Workers, and Bad for Society," reported that unpaid internships are demotivating and therefore minimize the benefits achieved.” Money is one of the sources of extrinsic motivation and a source of happiness. Unpaid interns are highly likely to be absent and unexcited in contributing to achieving the organizational objectives.

2. Who is affected?

The companies will be affected by having to incur additional costs to pay the interns.

a. Support

The stakeholders affected by the decision to pay interns are the companies that will incur additional costs in salaries and the interns who will get the payment. Without support in the form of salaries, the interns will be less productive and will spend most of their time worrying out to meet their bills. More than 70% of the interns come from poor families that are unable to support them while on internship. The stipend that the interns need to be paid needs to be a small percentage that can only help support their lives. Ladies and gentlemen, would you be able to continue working without resources to pay your rent and meet other personal needs? Many companies have reported that interns fail to complete their internship period for different reasons.

b. Support

Internships give students the opportunity to get experience in their line of training by working with other experienced workers. The students learn from their colleagues in the work environment; the experience will help the students do their work when employed. Paying the interns will motivate the interns and give them the peace of mind that they require to work. Evidence shows that an effective internship where the students do not miss all the training in the work environment, the student complete their internships with the required skills and experience required to do their work. The interns add value to the company by assisting the employees in their duties.

3. Consequences

If you do not pay interns, you risk a lawsuit if you benefit financially from their skills, and you may disadvantage those who cannot work for free.

a. Support

As a profit-making organization, if you fail to pay the interns, you risk a lawsuit. Federal Labor Standards Act (FSLA) dictates if and when you should compensate an intern. If you have a person as an employee rather than an intern, you should pay him/her the minimum wage. “Christopher Keleher, of Illinois Bar Journal, in a journal entitled, “Employment Law the Perils of Unpaid Internships," reported that if you do not provide skills that are necessary and beneficial to their profession then you should compensate them.” Also, if you are gaining something from their skills, then you should pay them. Therefore, if you recruit an intern who undertakes direct marketing and makes some sales, you should pay them.

b. Support

The second consequence of not paying interns is that it denies those who cannot work for free to gain experience and enhance their career. Working for free is expensive as you have to pay your bills if you find an internship replacement away from home.

Opposition

Those in opposition to paying internships argue that they incur training costs, and paying them will increase payroll expenses. They also argue that they are helping the interns get experience, which will benefit them in the future and recruit them as interns and not employees.

Transition

Having looked at both the arguments for and against, we discuss what can be done to resolve the problem.

III. Solution Step

1. Explanation

a. The solution to the lack of internship payment is formulating a policy that requires all the companies and organizations to recognize the role played by the interns through the payment of an amount that will facilitate them during the internship. Ladies and gentlemen, paying the interns will help them meet their basic needs such as food and shelter; hence they will be able to concentrate on their work.

b. The federal government can also help to facilitate the interns by extending the student loan by giving the students additional loan where the companies the students are internship lack the finances to pay the students.

2. Detail

Element of PLAN

When the companies budget resources for paying the interns, they will have a plan of the number of interns to take in and the role they will play in the company. The interns contribute to production in the companies; hence it's not a loss to the company.

The government also has a role to play in facilitating the students with the support that they require during their internship by offering financial support. Different professionals have the requirement that they are supposed to meet before they are allowed to start working.

Workability: Internships give students the opportunity to get experience in their line of training by working with other experienced workers. The students learn from their colleagues in the work environment; the experience will help the students do their work when employed. Paying the interns will motivate the interns and give them the peace of mind that they require to work. Evidence shows that an effective internship where the students do not miss all the training in the work environment, the student complete their internships with the required skills and experience required to do their work. The interns add value to the company by assisting the employees in their duties.

There are companies that pay their interns while other companies do not pay their interns, depending on the policy of the companies. Companies will only have a little adjustment in their finances; hence they will not incur losses. The USA department of labor indicates that companies pay huge salaries to their employees; hence little additional costs will not affect the companies much.

Transition

After hearing these compelling solutions, I hope you will do something about the problem.

IV. Action

A.1. There are a few things that you can do to solve the problem of unpaid internships.

Elements of Action

First, you can reduce the number of employees and hire some paid interns. Next, you can ensure that they get maximum career benefits. Finally, you can help by offering internship opportunities so that they will not have to seek opportunities far from where they live.

As employers, you should consider compensating the interns so that they can afford to pay the bills. Paid interns are motivated and thus will help you achieve the company's objectives. Paying them will help the students who cannot afford to work for free due to financial constraints. To cut the payroll expenditure, you should hire a few employees who will work together with the interns. If four example if you require five employees in your company, you should consider hiring three skilled employees and two interns. By so doing, you will afford to compensate the interns as your budget will not be strained.

As employees, you should encourage employers to compensate the interns by highlighting their contributions to the organization. Unpaid internship lowers the wage for everyone as there is devaluing of the work done. As employees, you should also support the interns and help them gain valuable experience.

As students, you should consider applying for an internship near your home to avoid relocation and housing costs. Through an internship, you will get work experience, and you will be building your resume. Through the internship, you will also benefit by connecting with your employer and employees and other people who can connect and recommend you to potential employers. Do not let wages limit your career success.

Appropriateness

All of you can contribute in one way or the other in solving the problem of unpaid internships. I assume that you would like the students to gain experience and harness their skills regardless of their financial capability.