NEW YORK — Arnold Worldwide LLC, a Boston-based advertising agency, faces a putative class action for violating New York State labor laws. The class action claims the ad agency did not pay their interns despite the fact the interns did the same or similar work of regular employees. This claim comes shortly after an unpaid intern filed a similar lawsuit against the LA Clippers and a group of 3,000 Warner Music Group interns were granted class certification in their lawsuit.
The Intern’s Claim
Mollie Ableman worked as an intern for the ad agency for two months in the summer of 2008. Internships can vary greatly in length, and unpaid internships, particularly those in the summer, tend to be fairly short. In her claim, she says she was neither paid nor did she receive class credit. Generally, class credit is one of the non-monetary forms of compensation associated with unpaid, and some paid, internships. Ableman claims the company had a policy of not paying interns and making paid employees work additional unpaid hours in order to gain free labor. She claims it was a common cost cutting practice.
According to her claim, she worked at least 8 hours a day, four days a week during her “internship.” Her responsibilities included designing advertising layouts, writing copy, and creating logos. Ableman believes her responsibilities were the same as regular, paid employees and, if Arnold did not use unpaid interns for the work, the company would have needed to hire more staff to cover the interns’ work. Her class action seeks to represent other unpaid interns working for the ad agency and seeks to stop the agency from continuing its unpaid internships.
Educational Intern Work
Internships, particularly if they are unpaid, must benefit the intern in order to be exempt from wage laws. Usually receiving class credit and having an educational experience are considered benefits under the exemption. The educational experience, however, does not mean learning how to perform the basic tasks of office functions or actually performing the work of regular employees, even though these activities can be educational. In fact, the court and the guidance provided for the intern exemption notes that the educational feature that provides the intern with knowledge applicable to multiple employers in the field may actually impede the normal operation of a company. In this case, learning how to design advertising layouts and assisting employees in the design may be considered educational. But if the intern is the only person assigned the layout assignment, then, even if the experience is meant to teach, the intern is acting more like an employee with the assignment.
If you are or were an unpaid intern in the last few years and you believe your experience was not education focused, you may be entitled to wages and possibly overtime. Call our top-rated team of overtime pay lawyers today at (855) 754-2795 to discuss your situation. Alternatively, complete the Free Unpaid Overtime Case Review form and our experienced legal team will evaluate your case. If we accept your case, we will represent you under our No Fee Promise. This means there are no legal fees or costs unless you receive a settlement. However, there are strict time deadlines for filing lawsuits so it is important to contact an attorney immediately.