Unpaid internships - bad practice or useful experience?

Many university leavers find securing a graduate job can depend on a substantial period of work experience. However, finding this experience before graduation can be a tricky task, with many students resorting to unpaid internships to fill their experience gap.

This may all have to come to an end with the introduction of new legislation stating that unless the internship or placement is a specific requirement of a course, the work experience employee must be paid the minimum wage. From Oct 1 2007 this changed to:

£5.52 per hour for workers aged 22 years and older
A development rate of £4.60 per hour for workers aged 18-21 inclusive
£3.40 per hour for all workers under the age of 18, who are no longer of compulsory school age.

*source www.hmrc.gov.uk

This may sound like good news for the undergrads and recent grads, especially those who feel that their job hunting efforts suffer from the fact that all employers want experience alongside a degree. But this could also mean that the offers of placements and work experience dry up - since the benefit for the employer has significantly decreased from having to pay up for the placement worker. It can also be argued that unpaid placements favour those from privileged backgrounds, as they are more likely to be able to work without remuneration.

Furthermore, students are starting to make a stand against the menial tasks and long working hours they can be subjected to when on their placements. Especially in competitive sectors, like PR, advertising and television, students and grads can be open to this kind of abuse. Being stuck photocopying for a week is not productive for the student, or beneficial for the company in the long run, since the work experience candidate could potentially contribute if they are given the chance.

Have you carried out an internship that may have breached this practice? Do you think the legislation is a good idea, or a one that might further compound the issues of gaining experience? Or maybe you are an employer who used to offer unpaid internships but cannot any longer. You can share your thoughts and opinions by leaving your comments below.