Employment rights | HR Dilemma: Should unpaid internships be banned?

A new report has found that the financial implications of an unpaid internship in London is over £1,000 a month – equating to at least £6,114 for a six-month unpaid placement.

Whilst travel and rent costs in the capital could be to blame, in Manchester, a six-month unpaid placement would cost an unpaid worker a minimum of £4,965 (around £827 a month).

The report, titled Internships – Unpaid, Unadvertised, Unfair - created by Sutton Trust social mobility charity, found that unpaid placements are making work experience unachievable for families on low and middle incomes.

The report found that around 70,000 internships are offered each year, and an estimated 10,000 graduates are in internships six months after graduation - a fifth of which are unpaid.