Many people choose an internship so as to gain experience
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Young people working as interns for three months or more should be paid a training wage of £2.50 per hour, recommends a business group
As work experience becomes an essential way to gain experience and a vital step to getting a job, The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) are urging business to pay their interns as it will help to boost UK productivity.
Some critics have warned that a couple of private sector firms are taking advantage of their interns and are potentially breaking the law by offering unpaid internships that last over a long period of time.
Research, carried out by the Higher Education Statistics Agency, found that 21.7 per cent of summer 2009 graduates found employment with a company whom they had previously had some kind of work experience with.
For the first time, those hired interns represented the largest group of university leavers.
The CIPD hope that the government will introduce legislation to create a formal training wage for those on longer work experience placements.
By Lauren King
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