February 28, 2011
How many interns does it take to screw in a light bulb? Who cares, it's free. If that joke triggers cringe-inducing memories of schlepping coffee, Perlin, an intern turned intern activist, is your man. His exposé on the internship model initiates a critical conversation on internships—when are they exploitative and when are they necessary? can they help you land your dream job?—and his thoughtful book is necessary reading for the millions of young people trying to break into the working world through internships.
Perlin begins by casting a harsh light on Disney World's massive internship program, the Disney College Program, a so-called "educational experience" that is, in reality, a revolving door bringing in thousands of undergraduates—even high school students—who keep the Disney Magic alive by performing menial labor for meager wages. Perlin's exposé of Disney demonstrates his eye for irony as well as his gift for engaging the reader with a steady stream of insight, humor, and well-deployed anecdotes.
Perlin pivots from Disney villains to the evolution of the internship, a word borrowed from the French term "interne" used to describe junior medical men performing simple physician's tasks. He compares and contrasts internships with the fading practice of apprenticeships, investments of time and labor that actually gave young people a foothold in an industry, and reveals how the internship trend represents a change in how individuals conceive of work and their role in the economy. Perlin also teases out the class issues inherent in the intern debate—many young people who must support themselves simply cannot afford to take on an unpaid internship, no matter how great a career opportunity it might be.
But Perlin's most shocking revelation isn't that many internships are exploitative but that most are illegal. Companies of all sizes and across industries flout (with no consequences) the requirements outlined in the Fair Labor Standards Act to benefit from free labor. Perlin covers the complicity of colleges, many offering dubious internship programs aimed more at generating revenue for the school than benefiting students. Not even the federal government's massive, intensely competitive internship programs escape Perlin's scorn; he describes them as a hotbed of nepotism and squandered talent—but still, the right government internship is an all but necessary career step for an aspiring politician.
Fortunately, Perlin also offers hope and bright solutions, and ends the book with an Intern Bill of Rights and the observation that "a general strike of all interns would show all they contribute for the first time a delicious low-level chaos to the world's work." By Ben Zarov
Ben Zarov is an intern at Publishers Weekly, a graduate of Grinnell College, and an urban explorer.
April 15, 2011
Does the world really need a book-length essay on the treatment and (non)payment of interns? Surprisingly, it might. Perlin's comprehensive narrative, well supported with interview material, research, and insights from his personal internship experiences, ostensibly highlights abuses of interns' indentured labor by corporations, nonprofit organizations, and government offices, but it also tells the broader story of an economy increasingly dependent on and confounded by all things "free." Perlin opens by describing the Disney Program (which employs 7000-8000 interns annually) and focuses on its minimum wages, menial tasks, and enforced company housing. Subsequent chapters provide a history of the Fair Labor Standards Act, university collusion with companies offering internships, the practice of "selling" internships (whereby individuals pay a company to find them unpaid work), and the racism and classism inherent in this system. VERDICT The subject matter may seem too specific to appeal to a broad audience, but Perlin's writing is engaging and the questions he raises are valid ones in an increasingly competitive job market. Those interested in fair labor practices and recent college grads looking for employment may be curious about--if frightened by--this book.--Sarah Statz Cords, The Reader's Advisor Online
Copyright 2011 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
May 1, 2011
An intrepid ex-intern finally states the obvious--that internships are illogical, unfair and potentially dangerous to an already precarious economic system.
In the business and political worlds, interns have been around long time, making copies, fetching coffee and occasionally inciting scandals that call for the impeachment of influential elected officials. But, as Perlin deftly points out in his well-reasoned narrative, the number of unpaid interns in the workforce has skyrocketed in recent years, creating a bizarre, vicious economic cycle. Put simply, since the economic crash of 2008, there are fewer jobs than there have been for the better part of the century, which means scores of graduates who can't find work but need experience. As this talented, educated workforce arrives willing to work for free, employers are saving tremendous amounts of money (to the tune of $600 million per year), and therefore have even less incentive to create paid jobs, thus creating an even bigger void for the next crop. The logic here is certainly not earth-shattering, but the actual numbers are staggering. Another seemingly obvious but thus far uninvestigated point is the issue of the law. With so many fair-labor laws on the books, Perlin examines how it is legally possible that nearly half of 2008 college graduates have jobs with no pay or health benefits--he discovers that most are not entirely legal and certainly violate the spirit of the law. This point becomes particularly sticky because interns lack not only compensation, but also basic protections guaranteed by the same labor laws, essentially giving them no legal rights as workers--this adds complexity to an argument that can at times feel repetitive.
That fact that it took this long for someone to write this book seems as blatantly wrong as the practice itself. Perlin provides a welcome, long-overdue and much-needed argument.
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