Minimum Wage for Interns?!

Translated from Ralf Junge's blog entry: "Mindestlohn für Praktikanten!?"

"Shaping Germany's Future“ – that is the title of the coalition contract, which has been signed last week. The contract also regulates the nationwide minimum wage. It says: "Good work has to pay off and secure existence. On the other side, productivity and wage level has to correspond accordingly, so employment subjected to social insurance contribution remains."

Quelle: dpa

In the previously published draft it still said, a minimim wage won't apply to interns. In the final contract, however, this sentence has been scratched out as wished by the social democratic party SPD. 

What does it mean now? Is a minimum wage for interns coming up? This would mean interns are going to receive a wage of approximately €1,400 a month when working 40h/week. 

Yesterday, at the Day of Interns, I talked about this subject with representatives of different companies, interns and the Project Manager of the Initiative Fair Company.A great part agreed with the introduction of the minimum wage, are afraid, nevertheless, offers of open interships to be drastically reduced. Interships would be more expensive, automatically costs of recruiting would considerably increase.

Attention! There is already a loophole: The minimum wage only applies to young people with vocational graduation. Interns, who ought to complete an internship in line with their eductaion (while enrolled at college/university) are considered to be in a training relationship not in an employment, a work relationship. So no minimum wage for those interns. 

Does this mean we are going to have interns of first and second class? Will there only the best to receive an internship? Does this create a new wave of youth unemployment? Is it possible for interns to be forced to work/perform even more due to the receiving of such high wage, eclipsing the actual learning? 

Many questions came up which we couldn't resolve all while the discussion, either. Actually even more questions came up. At the moment we just can assume and have our own interpretation of the coalition contract. Precise details of this will be announced with the concrete legislative procedure.

Ralf Junge

Internship 2.0 - Abolish the internship-ery

Translated from Ralf Junge's blog post: "Wir schaffen das Praktikum ab"

Do German companies need or want interns?

Bild: Sean MacEntee 

Approximately nine years ago the generation internship came to life. Young professionals were literally ripped off. Working like an employee employed for years already but not receiving an appropriate salary, many even without any at all. And career perspectives - well those existed basically from internship to the next, as hardly ever. This created a great and grand outcry. Associated were founded, dealing with this very issue and demanding transparency of employment of each company. At some point politicians added their two cents to it also and created guidelines and contract samples. Considering everything so far one would think companies have learned from their mistakes, especially as the competition, or war, for talent became quite noticeable.

Yet, current studies and comments on employer rating portals show clearly there are companies still which literelly haven't done the change, be silent about noticing an issue present. Why don't we stop these long lasting (yeeeeears) and nerve-wracking discussion by abolishing the whole intership all itself !?!OR, we keep talking about the subject "work conditions of Young Professionals". Let's create a new internship model - Internship 2.0. Maybe, let's just institute a dissuasion department for bad companies and declare prohibitions and requirements for advertisment of internships.

December 2nd in Berlin's Axel-Springer-Hochhaus, the nationwide Day of Interns topics as above are discussed. The best employees for interns will be praised. So will the Interns of the Year be elected. Therefor you still can make suggestions right here www.tag-der-praktikanten.de. 

Ralf


Editor's Note:

It is about time actually!!! Especially in countries like the U.S. were situations like this and the following video keep occurring....