All work, no pay

Working for a whole month without pay, with bills to cover, was tough, but I didn’t question it.” Helen Andrew, 22, is one of thousands of students and graduates every year who gratefully accept the offer of weeks or even months of working for no pay.

Leaving university with no experience, but needing experience to get a job is the catch 22 that many graduates find themselves in – and one that can be exploited by employers.

After graduating from Northumbria University in 2007, Helen embarked on what she hoped would be a beneficial placement at a PR company based in Newcastle.

However, unfortunately for Helen, and a worryingly large number of other students, her willingness to gain experience left her vulnerable.

“At the time I was naïve and thought that as a graduate, I had to succumb to the pressures of competition and gain as much work experience as possible,” Helen said.

Recognising the predicament of students such as Helen, organisations such as the advisory government body, the Low Pay Commission (LPC) are routing for changes. The LPC has recommended that guidance concerning work experience placements needs urgently updating. According to Heather Collier, director of the National Council for Work Experience, the LPC is making the following recommendations:

"If the company would have to pay anyone else to do the job, or the student is not free to come and go, or has certain duties, then they would be classed as a worker and entitled to the national minimum wage.”

Heather believes that unpaid placements put students who are unable to support themselves at a disadvantage.

“When students are willing to work for free to get something on their CV, some unscrupulous employers are keen to exploit this,” she warned, emphasizing that even the employer may lose out eventually:

“Unfortunately this approach discriminates students who cannot afford to work for free, and therefore employers might not get the best candidate for the job.”

As with Helen’s case, Heather noted that a large proportion of exploitation occurs within the media industry, where competition is fierce and students are prepared to do anything to secure a valuable placement.

The National Union of Journalists (NUJ) is currently compiling a database of reports from students who have completed work experience placements where they felt they have been exploited.

“It is high time this shameful abuse of people wanting to enter our profession was stopped and we will be keeping the pressure on government.”

The NUJ has found that some media firms have been taking on work experience employees in order to cover staff shortages, which the union says is illegal.

“A significant number of media companies – including some very big names – are acting in breach of the law,” said Jeremy Dear, general secretary of the NUJ.

“It is high time this shameful abuse of people wanting to enter our profession was stopped and we will be keeping the pressure on government to make sure action is taken.”

Helen Andrew agrees, and believes that the PR company she worked for could have been exploiting many other students in her situation.

“They told me that they had work experience people in all the time, which on reflection, I believe to be a massive opportunity to exploit graduates and students,” Helen said.

The Minimum Wage Act of 1998 states that if a student gets a job outside of their studies, that is not part of their course, then the employer is required to pay them the minimum wage.

Heather Collier believes all students on work experience should be paid at least the national minimum wage.

She said: “If a company want commitment and a job well done, they should value the student and pay them.”

Heather believes that advance preparation is key, and advises students to always remember their own value when on work experience.

Despite Helen Andrew’s disappointing placement at the PR company, she does believe the experience was of some benefit.

“I learnt to value myself, as a person and an academic, and the experience helped me to build my confidence,” she said.

Helen gives the following advice to students seeking work experience placements:

1. Only give up one to two weeks of your time
2. Check out the reputation of the company
3. Try to go for a well-established company with enough staff to help you
4. Ask if travel expenses or any other costs will be covered before starting the placement

However, students need not expect the worst, as Heather Collier explained, there are many conscientious and responsible employers who will treat work experience employees properly.

“Employers are increasingly appreciating the added value a student can bring to an organisation,” she said.

And to help students and employers who are considering work experience placements, the National Council for Work Experience (NCWE) has published a number of documents aimed at giving advice. (For more information, visit http://www.work-experience.org/ncwe.rd/index.jsp)

The NCWE’s Red Hot Talent Guide book also gives advice and recommendations to employers on how to recruit and manage students.

Paul McGurty runs an alarm engineering company in Darwen, Lancashire, and regularly takes on engineering students seeking work experience.

“Quite often we find that work experience students are more hard-working and reliable than full-time staff,” he said. “And that’s mainly because they’re so keen to get a job and impress us.”

Paying students £100 a fortnight, Paul believes firmly in the ethic that if a job’s worth doing, it’s worth doing well.

“If someone knows they’re getting paid for what they do, they’re more likely to make sure they do a good job,” he said.

And even if your placement doesn’t go as well as you expected, there will always be something that you can take from it.

Helen Andrew explained: “It shows guts, attitude and ambition to go on a placement, so it will always help you get to where you want to be on some level.”