Are you paying the student interns you hired this summer a salary?

If you aren’t paying your interns at least minimum wage, you could be breaking federal and/or state laws.

Under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) you are only allowed to employ student interns without pay if all of these conditions are met:

1. The training is for the benefit of the trainee;
2. The trainees do not displace regular employees, but work under close observation;
3. The employer that provides the training derives no immediate advantage from the activities of the trainees and on occasion the employer’s operations may actually be impeded;
4. The trainees are not necessarily entitled to a job at the completion of the training period; and
5. The employer and the trainee understand that the trainees are not entitled to wages for the time spent in training.

State laws may be even more restrictive.

Just because you have to pay students at least minimum wage, shouldn’t stop you from hiring them, though! Student workers can be a big help filling in when your regular staff goes on vacation, or when you have extra work to do. If you have the time to provide at least a minimal training for the students you hire, you’ll gain some talented workers - workers who will work for minimum wage at jobs that may command higher-than-minimum wage rates when filled by adult workers or temps.

Most high school students and college students learn quickly, and as an added benefit, may have better computer skills than older workers.

Just remember, you’ll need to pay at least minimum wage, and abide by all FLSA regulations regarding the types of work you can offer and the hours of work.

One other word of caution: if you hire an employee’s child and they don’t work out, you could be stuck either putting up with incompetence for the summer, or risk angering your employee for firing their son or daughter.

More: The Pros and Cons of Hiring a Temp

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