Tribunal awards intern more than £1,000 back pay

The economic downturn means many young people are finding it harder than ever to get jobs.

Many decide to work for nothing as interns just to get some experience which could help them find full time employment in the future.

However, this has led to some criticism that interns are being used as cheap labour.

The issue was highlighted in a recent case involving Keri Hudson who worked as an intern for a website company. She claimed that she was given considerable responsibility that went way beyond simply getting some work experience.

She felt she should be paid because she carried out “training and delegating tasks, collecting briefs, scheduling articles and even hiring new interns”.

However, the company refused to pay her as they considered her an intern.

Hudson took the case to an employment tribunal, which has ruled in her favour. It found that her workload meant that she should be regarded as employee even though she was treated as an intern and didn’t have a written contract of employment.

It meant that she should receive at least the minimum wage. The tribunal awarded her £913.22 in back pay and £111.76 in holiday pay.

Please contact Paul Stevens if you would like more information about the issues raised in this article or any aspect of employment law.