California’s unpaid internship guidelines present educators with a unique challenge. Since California enacted the minimum wage law in 1913, the concept of unpaid, voluntary work in exchange for training did not feature into the general discourse. This type of work did not exist in the U.S. prior to the post World War II boom. In fact, it wasn’t until 1973 that the U.S. Department of Labor wrote the first regulations promulgating tests for clarifying whether interns could be classified as workers. This is remarkable, as economist Pearlman points out, out of the 228 million adults 16 year or older in the U.S. in 2009, 1.7 million worked for an unpaid intern, which is 0.7% of adults in the workforce. However, there are probably far more unpaid interns, persons working for no pay in exchange for training, who are ineligible for internship programs and who are underemployed. Part of the issue is due to the concept of AmeriCorps. Similarly to an internship, AmeriCorps volunteers go into the workforce, receive no direct compensation and are generally responsible for their own costs of living.
The U.S. Department of Labor regulations provide six criteria that must be met in order for internships to qualify as such. However, it’s almost impossible to reconcile U.S. Department of Labor regulations with educational goals. There is no mechanism for clarifying social expectations of a school/educational institution or the private sector. The likelihood, however, of receiving a legal or a public relations indictment for violating either U.S. Department of Labor regulations or the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing, however. The U.S. Department of Labor breaks down internships into three categories:
- Mandatory
- Work-based
- Academic
The legal aspects aside, however, many educators and students are unaware of California’s unpaid internship laws, although they have existed since 2012. Educators are often unaware due to the simple fact that many legal mandates are published in newspapers or other publications only available to subscribers. Students are unaware of California’s unpaid internship laws because they are largely received from higher education instructors. In California, the law requires that educators at higher education institutions, including faculty, staff, administration, and even advisers, must notify students of possible violations of the minimum wage law during their studies or internships.
This means that faculty must be thoroughly trained on unpaid internships in order to fully support students and fulfill their own legal obligations. In many states, especially outside of California, universities and colleges are unaware that there are laws in place that restrict certain types of business practices. While this may be a criticism of academia, it is valid. In the U.S. there are 8.4 million college students between the ages of 18 and 24, with a significant number in California.
With a labor force of 4.6 million in California, that means that more than 10% of the labor force in California currently participates in an unpaid internship. However, that number is likely much higher when accounting for those who do not fall within the statutory definition of interns. While fewer than 5% of college graduates in the U.S. have unpaid internships, many more high school and college students participate in unpaid internships.
Some scholars, administrators and educators have noted that two things must happen in order for California’s unpaid internship laws to be implemented properly. The first is greater awareness on the part of faculty. Danyelle Sullivan notes that faculty responsibility in vocational education often extends far beyond the classroom. Situations change all the time, and during the course of regular operations, faculty in adjunct or faculty lead positions have to make important decisions every day. Faculty leads or adjunct faculty members responsible for students’ internships must have the same level of awareness as those who work directly with them.
Additionally, faculty members must be aware of how to effectively navigate between the U.S. Department of Labor unpaid internship regulations and California’s unpaid internship laws. Professor Emerald D. Davis notes that this is a significant challenge for those in the educational field. Many educators participate in unpaid internships and believe that they are a fundamental aspect of the higher education process. However, the current research on unpaid internships has found that there is significant variation in how colleges and universities conceptualize unpaid internships. Some have a robust set of policies and guidelines, while others have none at all.
In one study, researchers found that for every hour of work, unpaid interns outperform for hourly interns. Those who are paid $12 an hour outperform those who serve as unpaid interns, and full paid workers outperform every other group when controlling for other factors. Those barriers can be mitigated with careful implementation of prior to college graduation.
As California’s unpaid internship laws continue to shape California universities and colleges, universities across the U.S. are making significant changes to the funding and agency structures of federally funded programs. For example, recent studies into the implementation of AmeriCorps have found that those who participate in the program have better career outcomes. Although critics this may be skeptical about the intersection of these two realities-greater incentives to attend college and higher wages-within the next thirty years, there is a real possibility that many states may establish similar programs and lend further credence to the value of unpaid internships.
That may mean that while legal regulations are not yet omnipresent across the U.S., it is becoming widely known that California has implemented new guidelines that may shape educational practices throughout the state, or through federal funding programs. For more information on internship regulations, you can visit the U.S. Department of Labor’s website.