Alec is asking young people in Yorkshire to come forward and share their experiences of unpaid internships, an employment practice under which large firms avoid paying young people the national minimum wage.
Alec is a long-time campaigner for the rights of young people in the workplace and will deliver the second reading of his private members’ bill, the National Minimum Wage (Workplace Internships) Bill, to the House of Commons on Friday 4th November.
The Bill will call for the prohibition of unpaid internships.
According to a YouGov poll published last year 43% of 18 to 24 year olds believe not undertaking an unpaid internship acts or has acted as a major barrier to getting a job. Former MP and Government Poverty Tsar Alan Milburn’s 2012 report into social mobility found that over 30% of newly hired graduates had previously interned for their employer, rising to 50% in some sectors.
This week Alec is calling for evidence from young people in Yorkshire who have experience of working for no pay under a formal unpaid internship. Individuals can contact Mr Shelbrooke directly at [email protected] or via his website www.alecshelbrooke.co.uk.