Quebecois students are planning on striking against unpaid internships from March 18-22. This strike action isn’t new—in November 2018, 50,000 Quebec students—led by the student group Campagne sur le travail étudiant—participated in a strike against the existence of unpaid internships and Quebec’s provincial labour laws which they claim do not protect unpaid interns.
The campaign wants the Quebec provincial government to amend its labour code to protect the rights of unpaid interns and to put an end to the existence of unpaid internships in the province.
Unpaid internships put great financial strain on students, many of whom struggle to pay off student loan debt once they graduate. Many students work part-time jobs, in addition to working to keep up with their classes and schoolwork. Expecting students to work for free in order to obtain the experience they desperately need is exploitative and unreasonable.
Having the chance to make money and gain experience at the same time during university is not simply a convenience for students. It is a direly-needed opportunity that could mean the difference between financial stability and instability after graduation. It is reasonable for students to expect to be paid for the time and energy that they put into their internship positions. This expectation exists for every other job; why should it be different for undergraduate students?
Students should not have to choose between gaining experience, or even graduating, and financial stability.
