Internships

Question

Internships

Accepted Answer

Work experience, short-term work trials and longer unpaid internships are common in some industries. If an employer doesn’t want to pay you to do these roles they must make sure that you’re a volunteer. They should:
• make absolutely clear that it’s a volunteer position and that you don’t expect payment or other reward. This should be done in writing.
• make sure you don’t receive payment.
• avoid getting an economic benefit from the work you do.
• avoid having you do work integral to the business, such as work that an employee would ordinarily do.
• limit the duration and hours you work. The longer you volunteer and the more hours you work, the more likely you are to be an employee.
If an employer is thinking of having a paid work trial they should use a trial period clause or a probationary clause. If they are thinking of having a paid internship, they might be able to use a fixed-term agreement. They still need a genuine reason for the fixed term.
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