As a soon-to-be graduated senior, I have been thinking a lot about the various traps students our age fall into when searching for a job. I have always vigorously researched the jobs I apply for, but sometimes it is hard to know what to look out for. All the research in the world can’t prepare you for any exploitation you may face at your job. We often times hear phrases like “value yourself” and “take care of yourself” when thinking about self- care. Rarely do we think about this in terms of our rights in the workplace. I think that this is because in an incredibly competitive job market we are simply grateful to have a job at all. This works for the exploiting employer who wants to undervalue you. Exploitation in the workplace is a huge topic with a lot of ground to cover, so I will cover a topic that I think particularly effects young students– the pitfalls of the job hunt.
RED FLAGS WHEN JOB HUNTING– Unpaid internships, stipends and being instantly hired.
I am not going to pretend I’ve never genuinely considered an unpaid internship. There have been points in my life where I felt like gaining experience related to my career goals was better than being paid. I bought into the narrative that I would be investing in a future. I know many have had great experiences with their internships, but I believe that the vast majority of unpaid internships are essentially a scam. If you want a great internship to garner connections that will help you get hired, you will inevitably be heading towards the city. The massive investment required to work in the city with no income and no available hours for a legitimate job is ridiculous. Especially for matriculating juniors and seniors who need to save money to start paying off student loans and rent. In his book Kids These Days: Human Capital and the Making of Millennials, author Malcolm Harris cites a study showing that college graduates who worked unpaid internships were less than 2% more likely to land a job than those who hadn’t — and when they did, their median salary was actually lower.
Harris writes that unpaid interns are “the inverse” of union workers, who “symbolize the aspects of employment that are on the decline: Members tend to be male, full-time, higher-paid and older.” Unpaid interns, then, represent the sort of work that’s becoming ubiquitous as quickly as it gets more controversial: a unique mix of “low- and high-skill labor” rewarded only with the promise of professional expertise and an edge in the job market. “Unpaid interns,” Harris points out, “are more likely to be young women.” This goes back to what I said about marginalized groups being the most exploited. I will say that every unpaid internship I’ve ever applied to has offered me the job. I do not think this is because I am an exceptional person, I think it is because an unpaid intern is a glorified volunteer. I never went through with the unpaid internships because I simply do not have the money to sustain one. The unpaid internships I would recommend are those that offer class credit.
This summer I worked for a stipend. I really enjoyed my summer job and the program I worked for has been around for decades. Having said this, I received my stipend for the summer over a month late and it caused me a great deal of unnecessary stress. Since housing, amenities and food were provided for me I thought I wouldn’t spend a ton of money while working and would actually save money. However there were times when my shifts would interfere with provided meal times and I would need to buy things for myself. I also had debts that needed to be paid and a variety of expenses that I didn’t factor into my decision when taking the job. By the end of the summer I spent a sizable portion of my savings since I had no income coming in at the time. These things surprisingly add up.
This would have been fine if I was paid my stipend on time, but my stipend was paid over 30 days late and caused me to enter my senior year of college already in debt. It was as if I didn’t work at all. After complaining to the Massachusetts Department of Labor, I asked my friend who is working at a law firm whether I had a good case for wage theft (especially since in Massachusetts we take that kind of thing very seriously.) But she said that my case would be hindered by the fact that I was paid in stipend. She told me “A stipend is not considered a wage so it doesn’t fall under the laws of wage theft.” I was eventually paid and everything worked out, but another issue about stipends is that you are not working by the hour and I would have probably made more money working hourly. A job with a stipend is better than an unpaid internship, but nothing beats a legitimate salary. Many summer jobs in particular offer stipends and I’m not saying this is an unethical practice, but they are generally lower pay and offered to trainees, interns and students.
Finally, a good job wants good employees. Where there’s smoke there’s fire, and if a job seems a little too keen to hire you, I’d be wary. Speaking from my own experience, If you are pursuing programs for teaching abroad do your research. My sister was a part of a program where she taught art in Shanghai and she had a really great experience. Before she accepted the position, she vigorously researched the program to make sure she was making the best deicision for herself. When I discovered my sister would be teaching in China and it was too late for me to apply for the same program, I became desperate to find a way for us to stay together for the summer. We are identical twins and we’ve never spent so much time apart from each other– I was feeling uneasy.
In a moment of desperation I applied for a program that promised TEFL certification, a salary that doubled the amount I actually made this summer, and provided housing and food. I simply filled out an application, sent a cover letter and resume and a picture of myself. I did think it was weird that they wanted a picture. They said they wanted to make sure I looked “professional.” The requested photo was my first red flag. In America it is illegal to ask an applicant to include a photograph. Several laws make this illegal including the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 and the Americans with disabilities act of 1990. At the time I didn’t know this, I just felt like the whole thing reeked of discrimination. Two weeks go by, and by this point I had already received far more promising job offers and I had begun to consider that becoming more independent might be good for me. That was until I was accepted as an “educational ambassador” into a program that didn’t even require me to interview. If a job accepts you without any kind of interview run the other way!!
I would even say to approach a job offer at the end of a single phone interview with trepidation. What really disturbed me the most was the fact that this company did no background check on me at all. In every job I’ve worked with kids I have been given a thorough background check prior to being accepted and that is how it should be regardless of whether or not you are working in America. My sister was CORI checked for her job. These people wanted me to relocate, no questions asked. I wasn’t going to accept the job. I looked at reviews where people discussed constantly being relocated. RED FLAG! I also noticed that the email address that accepted my application was a generic email ending with “@gmail.com”. TEFL certification scams are everywhere. These scams particularly target students who are looking for teaching experience, but feel they don’t have the resources to take on a fellowship or even an unpaid internship. They also target those who feel they can’t afford to study abroad, but want to travel.
Exploitation in the workplace is pervasive and the victims of exploitation are often members of marginalized groups like immigrants, women, or desperate job-seekers. A resource I highly recommend for those in the area is the Pioneer Valley Workers Center. My friend gave me their pamphlet titled Make it Right, Know your Rights 2018- 2019 Edition and I highly recommend it for anyone who wants to learn more about this topic. PVWC strives to dismantle roots causes of exploitation and oppression, confronting exploitation, wage theft and deportation. They also have a hotline at 413- 351- 2300. I only briefly went over some of the ways I believe you can be more effective in your job search but I think it is vital that everyone studies their rights. A work environment that is detrimental to your mental or physical health is never worth it and regardless of your level of experience your rights must always be respected.