Hiring an intern

What is an internship?

Internships are periods of work experience designed to give individuals (often students or recent graduates) opportunities to gain new skills and experiences in industries/professions they’re interested in. 

Many businesses and other organisations offer internship programmes (also known as ‘work placements‘ or ‘work experience’). These programmes are designed to provide work experience while also enabling employers to get to know potential future recruits.

Interns (ie those taking part in an internship) often need to go through a selection process to obtain an internship placement. Internships can last anything from a few days over the summer holidays (often known as a ‘summer internship’) to a year or more (eg a sandwich placement during a university or college course).

Internships can provide benefits for both the interns and the organisations taking them on. Some benefits include that:

• students can learn more about particular industries or professions and enhance their skills

• prospective job seekers will experience a working environment, and can develop networking skills

• employers can meet new potential recruits and also receive the benefits of a flexible workforce (eg to compensate for colleagues on holiday over the summer months)

What employment status do interns have?

There is no hard and fast rule about interns’ employment statuses. Instead, this will depend on the intern's relationship with the business they are interning with (especially regarding when and how they do any work during the internship). 

Generally, interns will be classed as one of the following: 

Volunteers

Volunteers are individuals who provide their services on a fully voluntary basis. An intern may be considered a volunteer if they are not required to work, can come and go as they please and do not receive payment for their services. For more information, read Working as a volunteer.

Employees

Employees are individuals who provide services under a contract for services (ie an employment contract). Generally, this means that: 

• the intern provides their own work and skills in return for payment 

• the employer can dictate the work the intern is to carry out, how the work should be carried out, when and where it must be carried out, and

• the employer has to provide work for the intern and pay them for it, and the intern has to accept the work

Workers

Workers are individuals who provide their services under a contract other than an employment contract. 

As a general rule, if an intern is expected to perform work during their internship (rather than simply shadowing someone) and to comply with instructions, they will be considered to be a worker (if not an employee - this depends on the situation). 

An intern will also be classified as a worker if they are promised a contract of future work (eg if an intern is promised a job after their graduation).

To determine the employment status of an intern, an employer should carefully: 

• consider and evaluate the work an intern is to carry out before they are hired, and 

• monitor what happens in reality during the course of the internship

For more information, read Consultants, workers and employees. Ask a lawyer if you have any questions or concerns about an intern’s employment status.

What is the minimum wage for interns?

There is currently no specific minimum wage for interns. Whether they are legally entitled to a salary will depend on their employment status. If an intern is:

• a volunteer - they are not entitled to any wages. However, volunteers are allowed to receive reimbursement for genuine expenses

• a worker - they are entitled to the relevant national minimum wage (NMW)

• an employee - they are entitled to the relevant NMW 

If an intern is entitled to the NMW, their minimum hourly pay will depend on their age.

The following types of interns do not qualify for the NMW:

• student interns who are completing an internship as a requirement of a UK-based further or higher education course (eg sandwich placements)

• work experience students who have not reached the school leaving age (generally the end of the school year, once someone has turned 16). For more information, read Child employment

• voluntary workers who work for a charity or voluntary organisation and do not get paid (other than reasonable expenses)

• students who are merely work shadowing (ie observing rather than carrying out any work themselves)

What other employment rights do interns have?

As with the NMW, any employment law rights for interns will depend on their employment status. If an intern is classified as an employee, they will be entitled to certain rights, including:

• statutory holiday and sick pay

• statutory maternity, paternity, adoption and shared parental leave and pay

• parental bereavement leave and pay

• minimum statutory notice periods (initially one week)

• the right to request flexible working

• working time limits and minimum rest breaks

• whistleblower protections

If an intern is classified as a worker, they will be entitled to many of the same rights as employees. However, some rights workers do not have include:

• the right to request flexible working

• minimum notice periods

• time off for emergencies

  What documents do employers need to hire interns?

To ensure a fair and transparent intern recruitment process, employers should adopt a Recruitment policy. Everyone involved in the intern hiring process should follow the policy. For more information, read Recruitment. 

To hire an intern on an employment basis, an Internship agreement should be used. To hire an intern on an unpaid (ie voluntary) basis, so that they can gain work experience, an Unpaid internship agreement should be used.

Remember to Ask a lawyer if you have any questions or concerns about interns and offering internships.