The law requires pay for on the job training. The only amount the law requires is minimum wage. Most people who whine about this will never accept minimum wage while in training.
Companies who offer more than that (most) are generous. They are not required to do it.
Internships are not employment, and DO NOT have to pay anything. Legally. They offer training opportunity, and by law can not promise employment.
But my point is that they virtually DO promise employment. Most companies that see an individual putting in a big effort for no pay will stop and notice. When the internship is over, and the company opens a position for hire, the intern has a significantly better opportunity for employment (at a higher rate) than the cold call job hunter (with whom the company has to take the risk, and pay for the training).
If a company hires you, they must pay you. There is NO LAW saying you can't volunteer.
All I'm saying is that now is a great time for people to think outside of the box, and internships are a very strong and viable option.
The salary I earned is more than double the average income in my area. The company saw that I was serious, and made it worth my while.
Let's look at the math for a second. In my area, $15 per hour is a pretty respectable income. I'll bet most job hunters are spending 2 months or more looking. For every $15 per hour job available, there are 100 people waiting in line. This gives the employer great opportunity to take the pick of the litter. The people who are getting hired are overqualified, previously earning $20 or more. People who are used to earning $10-12 per hour would LOVE to get a $15 job (but they won't).
The employer could quite legitimately (AND legally) pay minimum wage during the training period.
So, if I am a $12 per hour worker wishing I could get a $15 per hour job, I can spend 2 months unemployed looking, work my tushy off to get an interview for a $15 per hour job (facing 1 in 100 odds of getting it). I could then spend 6 weeks getting minimum wage while in training, and THEN get my $15 per hour job (if I'm lucky).
OR, I could spend 4 weeks in an internship, then WALK IN to the company while they do a token interview of 3 other people just to make it look legit (because they already know they want to hire me), and start on day 1 at $15 per hour.
Do the math. I'll take option 2 ANY DAY.
But some folks would rather occupy Wall Street, or b*tch on the internet about the big bad employers. How's that working out for you? All I can say is that I've got a good job.
I also own a company. I'll be hiring people who are prepared to prove they want it badly. I am prepared to pay well for both the work and the training, but I won't hire unmotivated people.
It comes down to proving how motivated you are.
I could see being HIRED, or being told "complete this training (non-paid) and we'll hire you" but to spend a month (minimum) getting experience for a specific job that may or may not be usable/saleable somewhere else? Not to mention most employers are busy making money to go out of their way to train someone that they don't plan on hiring.
