The Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance (OUSA) has called on the provincial government to start cracking down on unpaid internships and the high unemployment of Ontario students.
OUSA published a paper Sept. 11 titled, “Youth Employment: Re-imagining the link between learning and labour,” which outlines problems students are facing in finding and retaining meaningful employment. The paper specifically addresses the problem of unpaid internships.
OUSA vice-president (finance) Stephen Franchetto said there is a fine line between legal and illegal work, especially when the student is not being paid.
“When you look at the criteria under the Employment Standards Act, a good chunk of [internships] should be paid,” he said, citing criteria that are often violated in internships.
For example, the intern must not replace a paid employee, Franchetto said.
The paper suggests the government needs to screen job postings, and also advocates for the creation of an anonymous online system where students can report what they feel are illegal internships without jeopardizing their jobs.
Students with unpaid internships are more likely to study education, the social sciences, health, and communications, according to the paper.
The Canadian Federation of Students (CFS) also spoke out in support of the issue, noting that unpaid internships are a big problem for students, especially those in Ontario.
“We think that students should be paid for their work, and that unpaid internships can be a form of exploitation when students are working but not receiving any remuneration for that work,” CFS-Ontario national executive representative Anna Goldfinch said.
“As students in Ontario, we are paying the highest tuition fees in Canada, and with the prevalence of unpaid internships increasing, it means that it is even harder for students here in Ontario to afford post-secondary education.”
But some students said the experience of working an unpaid internship was worth it, and led to full-time, paying jobs.
Former Carleton journalism student Harrison Lowman who now works at TVO, said he was hired after his internship there.
“It was an amazing experience. I didn’t feel taken advantage of,” Lowman said. “At TVO, they have a no coffee rule. You will never be asked to get anyone coffee.”
Melanie Markarian, a former unpaid intern now working in immigration law, said her unpaid position was manageable, due to the relatively short period it lasted.
“I don’t think it was too much of an issue due to it only being a month of an unpaid internship,” Markarian said via email.
“I do believe the government needs to act on the area of unpaid internships. Some internships require a longer time than one month and I do see the problems it could arise if someone does not get paid for an internship,” she said.
Franchetto said students can take an active part in ensuring fair and paid working conditions, but the government needs to step up and redefine the rules.
“It really comes down to being informed about what constitutes work and what constitutes a training opportunity, and that is sometimes difficult to discern,” he said. “That’s why, in this paper, we are really looking towards a more active approach from the government.”
