Katie Meegan | Contributing Writer
I’m sitting at the kitchen table of my family home drafting my first letter of resignation. As a Junior Freshman I’ve had my fair share of firsts this year: first time living away from home, first time navigating the social and academic jungle that is University and of course, my first PAYE taxed job. I’ve been slaving away at a waitressing job in an upmarket wedding venue for the majority of my summer and I’ve finally gotten up the courage to officially add another first to my list: the first time I quit.
The excuse I’m giving my bosses is that I shall be returning to college soon. So I say. The real reason for my resignation is that I hated it with a passion that one only usually reserves for the latest X-Factor dead relative sob story. In my job I would often work for nine or ten hours with one fifteen minute break, if I was lucky, while getting shouted at three or four times was a good day and who knows how many times drunk male guests got overly friendly. In other words, your typical student employment.
The Figures
I’m not the only student balancing academics with summertime exploits. Recent studies from the Higher Education Authority (HEA) show that 28% of full time students are fully dependant on a part time job as a main source of income with a further 6% living off money earned during holidays throughout term time. Of the €545 average income of a full time undergraduate €148 comes from part time jobs, followed closely behind by grants – €122 monthly average – and subsides by parents – €121 per month.
28% of full time students are fully dependent on a part time job as a main source of income
Those living away from home were more likely to earn more – €324 compared to €183 per month for those living in their parent’s home. Among those earning a wage while still living at home is this Senior Freshman: “My mam works for a little over minimum wage in a factory, and my dad is retired, they really can’t afford for me to be able to have that extra bit of cash, and I like my bit of financial independence. I’m an adult and I live in their house, so I want to sponge as little as possible.”
A Culture of Disposability
As a manifestation of their thin CV, the majority of students wind up taking jobs in retail or the food and hospitality industry. These are often physically demanding jobs with very little intellectual stimulation. The volume of students seeking this extra income in contrast to the amount of positions actually available has created a culture of disposability among the employers of these student workers. They can feel that properly training the casual worker into their new roles to is an option rather than a necessity.
Junior Freshman Mark has been working in a hardware shop since May; “Starting off I had no previous experience and I didn’t get any sort of official training. Still to this day I couldn’t tell you where to find a lot of things so I suppose you could say I’m still ‘in training'”. Marie is a final year psychology in DBS and works in a deli in Westmeath. She was not given any form of training upon commencing to work with food “I was just thrown in the deep end” she says “I burn myself on a daily basis and am left on my own at least once a day.” This common situation is echoed by Janet, a second year Arts student in UCD and a barista in a newly opened coffee shop; “On the opening day the queue was out the door and we were suddenly faced with people asking for signature sandwiches and salads which were hung on a board above our heads, so we had no idea what was in them or how they were made.”
They can feel that properly training the casual worker into their new roles to is an option rather than a necessity.
Not only is this lack of training dangerous, especially where food is being prepared but it is also illegal. According to The Protection of Employees Act 2001 “A part time employee should not be treated less favourably than a comparable full-time employee in respect to their conditions of employment” including relevant training and conditions. This disregard for employee welfare can be seen in the length and frequency of breaks taken by workers interviewed, out of seven only two were given correct rest periods.
Unaware of legally binding legislation in the area of health and safety, students can often find themselves in compromising work conditions. Owen took part in a summer scheme with his local county council which involved the care of communal flowerbeds: “Probably the greatest hazards are finding used needles, bottles etc. that can cause injury and infection. But there was a mandatory safety induction talk … so we knew how to handle hazards when they arose.” Not all students are as lucky. “We use machinery such as industrial ovens and meat slicers” states Janet “and were basically left to just figure it out … I’m covered in burns and bruises constantly and really surprised no one has food poisoning or anything from our products as none of the staff have chef qualifications”. Unbeknown to these students, they can seek advice from a Massachusetts law firm, or any other law firm that specialises in injury law, and they can seek compensation for their injuries, especially if they’ve had to take time off work or have run up medical bills after seeking medical treatment.
Unsafe conditions extend from the corner shop to interns working in multinational co-operations. Last November Moritz Erhardt, a German graduate, died while on internship with the Bank of America in London. This tragedy prompted the foundation of the UK based organization “Intern Aware”. 21 year old Erhardt died from an epileptic seizure and it is believed that his fit was triggered by fatigue as on the day of his death he had been working until 5am.
Other lawsuits have been taken by interns in the UK highlighting the “exploitation” of unpaid young workers in areas such as the media, fashion and banking. A former intern sued late designer Alexander McQueen for “lost wages” claiming that the fashion brand had broken the law by refusing to pay her national minimum wage.
Legal Ambiguity Of an Irish Intern
However, to date there have been no lawsuits taken by interns in Ireland. The evident ambiguity of the role of an intern lends itself to the exploitation of these young people desperate to get ahead in their chosen careers. According to the National Society for Experiential Education (NSSE) an internship is “a carefully monitored work or volunteer experience in which an individual has intentional learning goals and reflects actively on what he or she is learning throughout the experience”.
One such intern is second year English student Gillian, who went to London to partake in two unpaid magazine internships last summer. “Taking internships can be a risk – you can never be quite sure whether you’re signing up to make endless cups of coffee and man the shredder, or to actually be given the opportunity to work in your chosen field.”
Luckily for Gillian this experience was a positive one, her duties ranging from reading submissions and writing short reviews to manning the Twitter feed and helping to compile the newsletter, along with some basic administrative tasks. She advises interns to be vocal in their efforts to be noticed, she says “The only thing worse than making coffee is sitting around all day with nothing to do, so be sure to communicate with the company and let them know when you have finished your assigned tasks, that way, you both get the most out of the internship.”
There’s a million things I feel I should bring up but it’s been made clear to us that we’re disposable and easily replaced.
Whereas being vocal may be encouraged during a short period of unpaid internship young workers can often feel too intimidated by those in authority to repeat that lesson. Aoife has been working as a waitress since April 2013 and is generally satisfied in her work. Despite this she says “I’m very intimidated by the bosses … they’re so imposing. They’re lovely people but I’d never challenge them about anything”. Janet agrees with this sentiment; “There’s a million things I feel I should bring up but it’s been made very clear to us that we’re disposable and easily replaced. I just can’t afford that at the moment.”
A large contributing factor to this fear of speaking up in the workplace is the lack of knowledge concerning employment rights. The vast majority of young people interviewed were unaware of their entitled hours and holidays and only one was able to explain the work of the Labour Relations Commission (LRC). Students believed that they were not entitled to this free government service due to their age or the nature of their work. The LRC is open to all of those in part and full time employment and its sole focus is to mediate between employer and employees during industrial disputes about issues such as harassment, unfair treatment and bullying. However, the overhanging fear of being fired still permeates junior staff members making it a fertile breeding ground for possible exploitation.
I Quit
Anyway, I still haven’t finished my resignation letter. Thanking them for the experience seems quite shallow to me. Thank you for the exhaustion, worry and humiliation? Thank you for the minimum wage and space filler on my CV? Or maybe I should seriously thank them for making me just a little bit tougher and wiser? Or for the fact I can now balance four full dinner plates on my arms? Either way students will still be slaving away to pay for the ever increasing costs of college. I just seriously hope I never have to scrape 5 star haddock off china plates again to do so.
