Understanding Internships in the Fashion Industry

Fashion is a business. For many, it may be a dream job in glamorous settings to be the person that creates the great new trend of the next season and many fashion industry positions require some form of internship or apprenticeship to get your foot in the door. But one thing that you may not know is some of these opportunities are not necessarily legal ones. Though you may have seen it somewhere in media fashion industry intern 13 hours a day for no pay and do whatever the boss wants, it’s not always legal to have interns that work and do so much.

And a lot of it comes down to how the business of fashion industry is structured. For any fashion industry employment situation, whether it is an internship or not, the apparel designer, the fashion company, the retail seller, the stylist, or any position where you are doing work for someone else, there must be a payment for your work. Even if the value can be counted into the overall benefit of the overall situation, there must be some real benefit beyond the value of the internship itself. The problem with this is that most of the time, these internships in the fashion industry tell you that the overall benefit of the internship is the internship itself. They make you pay out of pocket, suffer in the meantime, but they promise to make your “resume” look beautiful and a potential job down the road. Unfortunately, for many groups, they have been offered such deals and still find themselves litigating the issue.

The California Department of Labor has an FAQ on unpaid internships and they specifically address the following point of confusion that we want to clarify.

Internships and Work Experience Programs in the “for-profit” private sector, are work hours that may or may not qualify as an Unpaid Internship depending on whether certain “primary beneficiary test” criteria (listed above) are met and whether an exception exists (academic training, for example). If the primary beneficiary test is met and an exception does not exist, the “intern” is considered an employee of the employer and should be paid at least minimum wage and could be owed overtime payments depending on the particular circumstances of the position.

This is crucial to note because this is a point of confusion among many groups and individuals looking to end up in the fashion industry. A lot of people think, oh okay, I will work for free and then once I get my foot in the door, as I know they will be impressed with me. Unfortunately, that may not be the case and this is how a lot of people lose their assets in the meantime of what they thought is a great connection or opportunity. But it can happen and often does.

But what if you are running a fashion brand with an internship program rather than an apparel designer or fashion house? By way of the question above, you would be considered an “employer” and thus would not only owe your interns money for their work, but potentially owe them overtime. But what if you had an intern in who was actually helping to create your designs? Well, you couldn’t, but if you did, you’d have some liability issues because the Supreme Court in the case of Glatt v. Fox Searchlight agreed that the interns do bear some responsibility for not being paid either. And they were in the fashion industry and not just doing coffee runs and fetching items for the “bosses” or designers, they were actually learning and creating “art” on their own.

What about the place of the unpaid intern in the fashion industry though? Typically, in the fashion industry, they are used to fill a labor requirement, often working beyond the time it takes to actually be trained in the area. For many, they are simply the expendable “slave labor” of the fashion industry and with the amount of labor that companies use them for, many would be considered for profit. In fact, for many businesses in the fashion industry, an unpaid internship is a great way to save them money. But is it really worth it? What if the unpaid intern comes after you and claims liability? Or what if they end up bringing in a case against you and your company for unpaid wages?

Of course, in the past fashion industry interns have often been exempt, but they have also not and so the corner store fashion business of course, could be taking that route too. But is that really the outcome that we want? Of course, not. Ethics in business practices are what bring your fashion industry business and brand, together. For those that deny the use of such unethical practices, the industry can be difficult to navigate and the unethical practices that are commonly used, puts fashion industry businesses that use such practices under fire. This is especially true in California, where the California unpaid internship laws are strict and enforcement is thorough.

In other words, there is no room for the unethical. So what is an Ankara Suits type of company to do with regard to these types of practices? Well, if you are thinking about starting an internship program then your startup or early stage company should definitely consider including an internship program. But it should be ethical and you should take time to consider the right type of internship to have. As we’ve mentioned, automotive, work experience, regular employment, and academic use may all help you in some way.

But if you are looking for a stylish internship program, well, you can consider those listed below:

• Internship Programs– To have an internship program, you should think about what type of internship program would allow for the students or interns to gain valuable training and experience to get them hired in the future. You should note, in many industries, that means letting your interns take the lead. They should learn how to make generic parts, but eventually they should be able to take some control.
• Apprenticeship – Like automotive or work experience programs, it can help to offer an apprenticeship program that includes a lot of hands on learning. The learner should be able to actively participate.

Of course, you can have a stylish and fashionable internship program using the ideas from the interest above, but you should also remember to have images associated with the internship and do all of the things that marketers do. You can feature the work of the interns on your Instagram and talk about the awesome results of your program. These methods can help others learn about the program, but they also help to ensure that your internship is seen positively by the community.