Future Retirement Success
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Investing
  • Stocks
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Investing
  • Stocks

Future Retirement Success

Business

Unpaid internships lock out working-class graduates from top careers, warns Sutton Trust

by January 23, 2025
January 23, 2025
Unpaid internships lock out working-class graduates from top careers, warns Sutton Trust

Employers offering unpaid or low-paid internships are blocking working-class and disadvantaged young people from the best career paths, according to new research by the Sutton Trust.

The social mobility charity found that internships, often essential for securing jobs in industries such as finance and IT, are taken up mainly by middle-class graduates with parental or personal financial support.

Nick Harrison, the Sutton Trust’s chief executive, described it as “shocking” that “many employers still pay interns below the minimum wage, or worse, nothing at all”. He applauded a government pledge to ban unpaid internships, arguing that “not all young people can get support from the ‘bank of Mum and Dad’, so banning this outdated practice will help to level the playing field”.

A survey of 1,200 recent graduates revealed that 55 per cent of middle-class respondents had undertaken internships, compared with only 36 per cent from working-class families. This gap — 19 percentage points — has widened significantly from the 12-point difference recorded in 2018. The trust noted that unpaid or underpaid roles still make up 61 per cent of internships, forcing many interns to rely on family, friends or personal savings to get by.

Across sectors, real-estate firms were most likely to offer little or no pay, followed by construction, IT, finance and legal. Retail was the most consistent at meeting minimum wage requirements, ahead of media, marketing and advertising. The Sutton Trust is urging a ban on unpaid internships of four weeks or more and stricter enforcement of minimum wage laws. It also wants companies to advertise all intern roles publicly to widen access beyond well-connected graduates.

A separate YouGov survey commissioned by the charity found that 38 per cent of employers favour an outright ban on unpaid internships, with an additional 30 per cent calling for better enforcement of wage legislation. Graduates who already had professional contacts were almost twice as likely to have completed an internship, while 71 per cent of privately educated graduates had taken on such roles, compared with only 40 per cent of their state-educated counterparts.

Read more:
Unpaid internships lock out working-class graduates from top careers, warns Sutton Trust

0
FacebookTwitterGoogle +Pinterest
previous post
ONS to spend millions on temp workers to fix ‘unusable’ UK employment data
next post
Dragons’ Den star Sara Davies’ crafting firm rescued in pre-pack deal

You may also like

EU takes action against Elon Musk’s X over...

December 18, 2023

CHASING LADY LUCK: WINNING A LOTTERY

August 9, 2022

MPs told UK SMEs facing working capital squeeze

September 4, 2023

How To Get The Best Remortgage Deals?

May 15, 2023

The art of leadership in business

February 7, 2024

What is Biometric Verification?

September 18, 2024

The Business Champion Awards ‘Sustainable Business’ finalists are...

January 31, 2023

Why Human Resource Management Is Crucial for Foreign...

January 20, 2025

Tips for maintaining your industrial tools and equipment

May 17, 2023

Strategies and tips on using TikTok for business

April 22, 2024

    Get free access to all of the retirement secrets and income strategies from our experts! or Join The Exclusive Subscription Today And Get the Premium Articles Acess for Free

    By opting in you agree to receive emails from us and our affiliates. Your information is secure and your privacy is protected.

    Recent Posts

    • Week Ahead: NIFTY’s Behavior Against This Level Crucial As The Index Looks At Potential Resumption Of An Upmove

      June 7, 2025
    • FLASHBACK: Musk accused Trump, GOP leaders of not wanting to cut spending — here’s where they said they would

      June 7, 2025
    • ‘Right down the line’: Medicaid reform in ‘big, beautiful bill’ divides lawmakers by party

      June 7, 2025
    • FAST distribution and IA

      June 7, 2025
    • Why Independent Digital Platforms Are Gaining Ground Among UK Entrepreneurs

      June 7, 2025
    • Is Decentralisation the Future of Online Services in the UK?

      June 7, 2025

    Categories

    • Business (8,152)
    • Investing (2,019)
    • Politics (15,560)
    • Stocks (3,135)
    • About us
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms & Conditions

    Disclaimer: futureretirementsuccess.com, its managers, its employees, and assigns (collectively “The Company”) do not make any guarantee or warranty about what is advertised above. Information provided by this website is for research purposes only and should not be considered as personalized financial advice. The Company is not affiliated with, nor does it receive compensation from, any specific security. The Company is not registered or licensed by any governing body in any jurisdiction to give investing advice or provide investment recommendation. Any investments recommended here should be taken into consideration only after consulting with your investment advisor and after reviewing the prospectus or financial statements of the company.

    Copyright © 2025 futureretirementsuccess.com | All Rights Reserved