Monday HR Minute: Summer Internships

Monday HR Minute: Summer Internships

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Summer Internships

With summer vacation quickly approaching, many employers are planning to hire summer interns. If you plan to do so and plan to pay your interns at least minimum wage, you’re in good shape. If, however, you are planning to offer an unpaid internship, there are a few things you should know.

Federal and state governments are cracking down on the use of unpaid interns, arguing that not paying interns for their labor violates the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). http://www.dol.gov/whd/flsa/

Even if you and your intern agree that the work experience is sufficient compensation for the labor, you must satisfy the requirements for it to be “bona fide” and thus qualify as an unpaid internship.

Here are the requirements:

The training, even though it includes actual operation of the facilities of the employer, is similar to what would be given in a vocational school or academic educational instruction;
The training is for the benefit of the trainees;
The trainees do not displace regular employees, but work under their close observation;
The employer derives no immediate advantage from the activities of the trainees, and on occasion the employer’s operations may actually be impeded;
The trainees are not necessarily entitled to a job at the conclusion of the training period; and
The employer and the trainees understand that the trainees are not entitled to wages for the time spent in training.

For your unpaid internship program to qualify as “bona fide,” all of the requirements must be met. If you are missing one of these components, your program won’t qualify, and you may be subject to wage and hour penalties and back wages under the FLSA.

For a fact sheet on internship programs under the FLSA, click here: http://www.dol.gov/whd/regs/compliance/whdfs71.htm

For the record, we are strong proponents of internships, particularly as a means of identifying and developing new talent and future employees. Good luck!

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The Monday HR Minute, brought to you by Affinity HR Group, is designed to provide you with practical, applicable human resources and management advice and information in a format that will take you 60 seconds or less to read. We believe that by dedicating just one minute a week to thinking about people management practices, business owners and managers can make enormous strides in improving workplace performance.

Affinity HR Group is a full service human resources consulting firm that specializes in advising small and medium-sized enterprises. Our services include recruiting and selection, HR policies and compliance, ad hoc HR support, compensation and performance management, and training and development. We are an endorsed HR partner of a number of leading national trade associations and offer free initial consultations and discounted services to their member companies.
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This e-mail may contain general information about legal matters. Affinity HR Group does not provide legal counsel. The information provided should not be considered legal advice and should not be relied on as an alternative to legal advice from your attorney or other professional legal services provider. If you have any specific questions about this content or any legal matter you should consult your attorney or other professional legal services provider.