Dominic Gates
In Jane Dudman's recent article about internships, (It's not just making tea), it was stated that internships "don't appear to harm job prospects - and they don't affect benefits. Unemployed graduates who have been on the job seekers allowance (JSA) for six months or more can do up to 13 weeks of unpaid interning and still get JSA".*
Having graduated with a 2:1 this June and after a very long and drawn out process of application and rejection I have finally found myself an internship in London - the only place they are really available.
I come from a middle-class family, but not one with much cash to throw around or disposable income. For me, not having a job that pays money is a real issue, to the point where I practically had to cheat, beg and steal to get a floor to sleep on while undertaking this internship.
Prior to being accepted to undertake this role, I applied for jobseeker's allowance (JSA) knowing that I could not sustain myself for much longer without some form of income, similarly, knowing that the problem would be exasperated once - and if - I found an internship.
An essential aspect of getting JSA for me was the need to be able to support myself while undertaking a job that was essentially unpaid - I receive £10 a day for travel and lunch.
But there seems an incredible amount of confusion among JSA staff about the rules on receiving benefits while undertaking an internship.
First, in my local JSA office, I was unable to receive a straight answer about the query at all. I was sent on a seemingly endless trail of calls until I was eventually able to get a solid answer from the JSA processing office in Colchester (you have to wait for them to call you; no-one would give me their telephone number).
I was told that benefits while undertaking an internship are negotiated on a case-by-case basis and this generally means they are refused. Furthermore, if you are not able to demonstrate that you are still seeking full-time employment while undertaking the internship then your benefits will be revoked.
There needs to be clearer guidelines and greater entitlement for graduates, especially for interns as unpaid work seems to be the only direction left for the freshly graduated nowadays!
In my present internship, I work from 9am and work until at least 7pm most days, taking 20 minutes for lunch. After leaving the office at 7pm it takes me at least an hour to get home at which point I have to do all the mundane tasks essential to life such as cooking, sleeping and ironing my shirts for work. I have neither the time nor the motivation at this point to apply for jobs and fill out JSA forms.
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) says it is going to provide a training allowance for 13 weeks for graduates undertaking an internship if they have been unemployed for more than six months.
However, this will not come into force until next year. Too little too late in my eyes: and since the DWP has not specified when this will be introduced, it may well be postponed until after the May election when it will be a new administration's worry.
The government is exploiting interns as another mechanism of repairing our shattered economy. There should be greater support for graduates and this should be highlighted in the press.
Dominic Gates is undertaking a public sector internship
* This statement was clarified, post-publication. The article said that unemployed graduates who have been on jobseeker's allowance (JSA) for at least six months can do up to 13 weeks' unpaid interning and still get JSA. At the moment, such graduates cannot claim JSA. But under a scheme starting next year, they will be eligible for a training allowance (of equivalent value to JSA) for 13 weeks while doing an internship.
