Privilege to be Unpaid - The Reality of Interning in the Sports Industry

Whats the deal?
Sports internships have created a toxic power
dynamic in which those in charge exploit their
power in order to use students for “free labour”.
These last for long periods of time, up to a whole
season, with the “employees” incurring massive
undue costs in the process.
This power comes from a systemic pressure chamber
created by sports clubs and higher education
institutions. Students are pressured into
believing that success can only be achieved by
gaining “invaluable experience” through
interning. This has created an environment of high
demand and competition for places, allowing the
employers to take advantage and exploit desperate
students.
Students therefore must be educated to their rights
and empowered to ask the important questions of
their institutions and employers.

Whats the problem?
This is a problem of privilege and equal opportunity. The
system benefits those already in positions of privilege
and leaves behind the most vulnerable.
Privilege is used in a variety of ways:
- opportunities are often not advertised, meaning those
with pre-existing connections to clubs or coaches
have an unfair advantage
- because of the nature of an unpaid position, those who
can’t fund the cost (~£1000/month) are unable to apply
- access to transport or the ability to relocate is also a
barrier to the underprivileged
What needs to be done
There needs to be disruption to the current system. The
gatekeepers are sitting pretty at the top of a stinking
pile of exploitation. The students at the bottom need to
collaborate to cause a shift in power. I hold 3
gatekeepers to account as those who must be disrupted in
order to affect significant change.
Universities - they claim to be sites of social mobility,
but once again are found failing to provide equal
opportunity to all. They continue to use their platform
to advertise underpaid opportunities all the while
failing to provide relevant financial support or
guidance. They are in a position in which they can refuse
to advertise these underpaid opportunities and stem the
flow of sports students towards illegal employers. They
have a duty of care towards their students but they
instead focus their attention on their employability
statistics.
Sports Clubs - they are in the best position to affect
change at source, but are under no pressure to do so as
the system benefits them so greatly. They need educating
and held to account over the employment rights of
interns.
Government - they must provide clarity on the rights of
interns and the expectations of employers and support it
with hard legislation in order to force the hand of
employers and universities.

SPORTS SCIENCE ROLE
A degree or equally high level
qualification, additional sporting
qualifications desired. Previous
experience in role. Role will be
flexible. Working evenings and
weekends. Ability to drive, no
subsidisation offered. Ideally,
experienced but looking for a way
to boost your career. Future
employment not guaranteed. High
demand, apply now. £0/hour
Would you ideally apply for this job? I’d suspect
probably not. But this is the reality of what people are
left having to apply for. Employers ask for ever
increasing levels of qualification and experience for
ever reducing levels of quality and payment, and they
continue to get away with it.
The Sutton Trust asked interning students how much they
were paid for their intern roles and below are the
results.
How much were you paid whilst interning?
Don't Know
3%
Minimum Wage
27%
No Payment
41%
Expenses
21% < Minimum Wage
9%
As you can see, nearly 3/4 of the interns were not paid
minimum wage. This study was across all sectors, not just
sport, from experience I’d suspect the figure in sport to
be even more concerning.

Know your Rights
Under the “Employment Rights Act 1996”, anyone
providing work or services to another party are
entitled to the minimum wage and are categorised as a
worker. However, and here is the *clever* bit, it states
anyone working as part of a student placement or for
work experience are not entitled to the same payment, I
couldn’t tell you why! Thats where the buck stops with
most employers, but this is where the ambiguity begins:
That same law also states that if the intern is working
toward the ordinary function of the business (or sports
club in this instance) then interns are entitled to
minimum wage payment. No wonder no one understands
whats going on! Employers get away with students not
knowing their rights, but not you, YOU are now
empowered with the power that is stone cold legal
legislation.
Seven Red Flags of sports Internships
Here is a list of things to be careful of and question
when looking for a potential internship opportunity:
the payment/wage doesn’t match the skills and
experience that has been requested.
the role requires high commitment such as evening
and weekend work preventing alternative paid jobs
on the side (often the case with sports roles).
the role is ambiguous and up to interpretation.
the role has no dedicated supervisor.
the role has no predefined end/duration.
there is no potential for future employment stated
on completing the internship.
the role violates working laws (see above).
Use these red flags as guidance for questions to ask at
interview or even to flag any potentially unlawful
opportunities to the university or citizens advice.

Take Action
Take out your phone and scan the QR code above to find
more information, sign the petition or to get in touch.
I would welcome any feedback or any questions so do
feel free to get in touch:
StopUnpaidPlacements@gmail.com
Once you’re done with this Zine, please feel free to
pass it on or leave it where you found it or even some
place else, to keep the conversation alive.
Thank you very much for reading