Unpaid work masquerading as “internships” is a massive issue for young workers – and one that we take very seriously. 

We believe that everyone deserves to be paid for their labour. We believe that employers using “internships” to avoid paying young people for their work is wrong. We fight to end the exploitation of young people and ensure that internships are treated as a genuine education opportunity.

And we practice what we preach. We’re proud to work with Interns Australia to ensure that our Union Summer internship program meets their best practice guidelines:

We pay our interns to ensure that Union Summer is accessible to everyone – not just those who can afford to work for free.

We match up our interns with expert mentors from a wide range of unions and working in a wide range of roles.

We have real educational outcomes to guarantee that every participant in Union Summer has the opportunity to actually learn.

Now we’re calling on other organisations and businesses who offer internships to take the pledge and help end the exploitation of young Australians.