I totally sympathize with the conclusion that unpaid internship is wrong for all the socioeconomic reasons cited and that grads should therefore refuse taking them on.
But unless you get complete buy-in to this boycott from all grads from all backgrounds, by removing those who can barely afford to ‘work’ for no pay, you will just end up further entrenching unpaid internships as exclusive career finishing schools for upper class families.
To me, this is a clear case for better labour legislation. Progressive legal changes are needed to shut down this harmful practice. Otherwise, what is the incentive for changing the supply side of the equation?
For this kind of change we need to look to our leadership, both corporate and political, who will work hard and bravely to firmly democratize the entry-level career portals because…
Hmm… I think I see another problem here.
