Do you use interns? You could face huge penalties if you're doing it wrong.
Interns Australia has welcomed a landmark ruling against a Melbourne media company for failing to pay two interns who worked in its office for 20 months.
Crocmedia, a medium-sized company that produces radio and television content, was today fined $24,000 by the Federal Circuit Court.
The company breached minimum wage provisions by failing to pay two interns, one who worked 14 months and another who worked six months in its Melbourne office, between 2011 and 2013.
Prior to the ruling, Crocmedia agreed to pay the interns their full wages for the period.
Interns Australia co-founder Colleen Chen said the decision is an important step forward in giving greater protection to vulnerable job seekers and young Australians.
“This decision is crucial in highlighting the responsibilities of employers to comply with minimum wage laws and to ensure they play their role in protecting the notion of a fair day’s work for a fair day’s pay.
“While internships can provide valuable hands on experience for students and job seekers, the lack of provision in employment laws for interns and very high youth unemployment means that we are seeing more and more cases of interns working for free in positions when they should be paid a wage.”
Judge Riethmuller of the Federal Circuit Court said that while Crocmedia may not have intended to underpay the interns, the company was “content to receive the benefits that flowed from the arrangement, and that the arrangement itself, when viewed objectively, was exploitative.”
The court, in the first victory of its type in Australia, said that while they were classified as volunteer interns in practice the interns were producers of radio programs, often working through the night to complete the 12.00 a.m. to 6.00 a.m. shift.
The decision follows a number of litigation actions in the United States against employers including Conde Nast, Hearst and Fox Searchlight Pictures for failing to pay or underpaying interns.