More Fun With Craigslist

In keeping with this morning's post on unpaid internships, your MatchGirl thought she'd share the following, which she found on her afternoon job search.

Seeking Smart, Organized Intern for Exciting Fashion Company (Garment Center )
Date: 2009-09-16, 10:36AM EDT
Reply to: job-7n94z-1377102288@craigslist.org [Errors when replying to ads?]

Fashion Label, selling in Bloomingdales and other fine retail stores, seeks an energetic, smart, motivated intern who is interested in Fashion. Responsibilities include being the right hand to the fashion designer, and assisting in many tasks crucial to the success of the company.
This is a non-paid Internship
Administrative, computer tasks
Marketing Research
Fashion Research
Organizing photo shoots
Errands in Garment Center
Working with suppliers and personal Clients
Meeting buyers and clients of the brand.
And many many other tasks. Every day is interesting and different.
Requirements :
Excellent Organizational skills
Excellent Presentation Skills
Excellent Verbal & Written Communication Skills.
Prefer some background in Fashion , But not absolutely necessary.
Must be available 3-4 Full days per week.
Must be interested in learning about what happens behind the scenes in the development of a Fashion Brand.
Thank you .

* Location: Garment Center
* Compensation: NON-Paid Internship

To be fair to the poster, the "internship" is labeled as such. But if you read down to the bottom, you will see that the employer is requiring a commitment of 3 to 4 full days per week. Now, that is something that a student could do, had this internship been posted at the beginning of the semester, before their class schedules (and usually part-time jobs) were set. It's a few weeks into the semester, however, and I know the students in my class have their lives pretty much organized.

It seems to me that the designer has found themselves in need of an assistant and simply doesn't have the cash to pay for one. "Responsibilities include being the right hand to the fashion designer, and assisting in many tasks crucial to the success of the company."

Dear original poster of this listing, if the assistance the "intern" will be providing is so crucial to the success of your business, don't you think you ought to share the wealth?

Unpaid Internships: Uncool And (Often) Illegal

Ah, my dear readers. There has been a lot of conversation amongst the unemployeds that your MatchGirl spends her time with about internships. Specifically, unpaid internships.

Almost every time I hang out with a fellow unemployed, especially on who is a creative, the conversation, inevitably turns to our job hunts. And, no matter the site they are scrolling, to the sheer and overwhelming amount of unpaid internships that are offered. Now, I have written here before about how annoying it is to click on a job for, say, Executive Assistant to the CEO or Handbag Designer and read all the way down to the bottom of the posting, the paragraphs of job description, the 20 to 50 necessary skills and computer programs that one must know ... and then *poof*, it's an unpaid internship. A great learning experience.

Well, today on Facebook (via Tumblr), Rick Webb, posted a link to the Labor and Employment Law Blog on the legality of the unpaid internship. If you scroll through the comments section, there seems to be a bit of controversy around this blog, but your MatchGirl thinks that's par for the course whenever one challenges the status quo. Whether this guy is "for real" or not, it seems that the following points, at least, make sense when considering the legality of an unpaid internship.

The U.S. Department of Labor has outlined a list of criteria that ALL must be met in order for an internship to be unpaid.

1. The training, even though it includes actual operation of the facilities of the employer, is similar to that which would be given in a vocational school;
2. The training is for the benefit of the trainee;
3. The trainees do not displace regular employees, but work under close observation;
4. 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;
5. The trainees are not necessarily entitled to a job at the completion of the training period; and
6. The employer and the trainee understand that the trainees are not entitled to wages for the time spent in training.

From the above list, #4 is really the key one – all the others will follow from whether the employer derives any immediate benefit from the activities.

The main reason that you do not see more lawsuits regarding unpaid internships is that the interns are very unlikely to sue. In most cases, they fear being blacklisted, as they will undoubtedly need to use the internship as a reference to get any future work.

In a management position at my former place of employment, your MatchGirl was in charge of interns and, while they were helpful in doing some data entry and filing and research that saved me some time, I'm not sure we really benefited from their work. My employer was often trying to find interns to do graphic design work, etc... as we did not really have the funds to pay a competitive salary to a pro, but there are problems in this - especially when getting an intern who is a college student working for credit.

When a person applies for an unpaid internship, they are generally a college student who is interning for credit and to learn the realities of their field. And while the intern expects that they will be doing some grunt work - getting some coffee, filing some invoices - they also expect that there will be someone there, to whom they are reporting, who will act as a mentor, who will show them a few things and who will be able to answer their questions about their chosen path to future employment - paid employment.

Your MatchGirl realizes that the economy is rough. She knows that employers are trying to save money whenever possible. But she thinks that asking a skilled person to work for free is simply not the way to run a business. And, perhaps, not even a legal one. So please, my lovelies, when considering those internships, pay careful attention to what they will be asking of you and what you will be getting out of it. Getting helpful hints on Final Cut Pro from a professional editor, while making the occasional lunch run, is cool. If you're a student or making a career change, you'll get the chance to learn some things and make some connections - we all know that networking is the best way to get a job. But if it seems you will be doing the work of a person they've recently removed from the payroll, then you're being taken advantage of and just walk away.

You'll find something that pays.
We all will.
Promise.

Fun With Craigslist

In case you can't really make it out, the best line is the first:

Earn as a Payroll in a well reputable company at the above location, forward your well updated Resume

Yep. That sounds like a legit job posting there ...

Here's one more:

The position pays an annual base gross salary of $25,000 (payable bi-weekly) plus commission on product sales. The time commitment will average from 40-50 hours per week. Daily hours will vary, but will mainly be M-F.

Um, real quick, gentle readers, look at the salary. Now, I know that there are a lot of people out there who are at the end of their unemployment. And I know that a lot of people out there would take just about anything to make ends meet. But that is about the same "salary" you make on Unemployment in NYC (and less than one makes in our neighboring state of NJ). Anyone who has had a job before knows that working 40-50 hours a week means you will clock closer to 60 and that the hours varying means that you will rarely have a set and dependable schedule to plan your life around. And we all know that mainly Monday through Friday means every other Saturday ...

I know these are desperate times, darlings, but can't we be a little human? Treat people the way we expect to be treated? Pay them what they're worth? Is that too much to ask?

Your MatchGirl thinks not.

FUNemployment

As you know, my gentle readers, your MatchGirl has been trying to hone her skills while unemployed. A career change is the long term goal, but more skills for my current one is an added benefit.

In the class I am currently taking at FIT, we are learning some pretty basic Photoshop with CS4. Our current assignment, due tonight, was simply to free-hand some abstract designs, which is kind of fun and also reminds me of the stuff that my sister and I used to do on McDraw and MacPaint on our first family computer (a little Macintosh SE) back in the mid 80s.

Here's one I did based on some fabric I had hand-painted to make a bag from:



And here's the fabric I hand-painted that inspired it:



And here's a photo of my LA friend J and me, by my dear friend Violet Shuraka, after a rehearsal dinner in Boston on 11 September, with the cute bag tucked under my arm:

Unemployed Brooklyn's Best Weekend Bets

Ah, dear readers, another weekend is upon us. Of course, many of you will be attending fabulous Fashion Week activities, but what about those of you who are not connected to (or just don't care about) Fashion Week? Whatever shall you do?

It's New York, of course, so there are about a million other things to do, but your MatchGirl has a couple of good best for you North Brooklyn residents.

This (and every) Saturday, friend of Unemployed Brooklyn Joann Kim presents the Greenpoint Food Market from noon to 6 PM at Church of the Messiah (129 Russell Stree, between Nassau and Driggs).

The Food Market promises loads of local and DIY food and drink for every palette. Among the participants are Mama O's Kimchee, Kombucha and Brooklyn Brine. There will be a food based performance and a bake sale to satisfy your sweet tooth. I'm really excited to have this amazing community based event happening in the neighborhood. I think it'll be a great time!

On Sunday from 1 to 5 PM, Lydia Bell brings a performance piece to East River State Park as a part of Perform Williamsburg. Originally funded by FEAST, a community dinner in Greenpoint that funds new and interesting art projects, Will Work For Pay is a performance piece utilizing un and underemployed artists-turned-dancers.

It aims to create a discreet economy in which artists are paid for creative research. This project suggests a new model of connecting artists to resources by using the art itself as a means of communication.

A couple of very cool things to check out, gentle ones, without even leaving the neighborhood.

What I Did On My Summer Staycation

Ah, my gentle readers, yesterday was Labor Day here in the U.S. of A. and you all know what that means. Summer is over. Maybe not according to the lunar calendar, but for our purposes - done. The kiddies are back to school, the Congress is back in session (working, I'm not so sure), and it is time for the traditional essay of What I Did On My Summer Vacation.

As you know, your MatchGirl has been unemployed for a long time now, so her summer vacation was actually the ever so trendy and topical staycation. To be fair, if one is going to spend ones vacation staying put, New York City is not such a bad place to do so.

A few highlights of my summer staycation included a ferry ride to Governor's Island to see the amazing Bee Gees cover band Tragedy!, a Tuesday spent toasting on the beach at Coney Island with my freelancer roomie and one of his unemployed pals and a NJ transit bus trip to my dear friend G's parents pool in dirty Jersey. Of course, there were also countless afternoons spent reading in McCarren Park, wandering aimlessly through the northernmost parts of North Brooklyn and many a weekday afternoon drinking in my favorite artworks at MoMA. And, while most of my pals have gotten further out of the city several times this summer, your MatchGirl made one quick trip to DC to spend a suburban long weekend with a college gal-pal and her family.

This weekend, Labor Day weekend, was another one where people were away. Several of your MatchGirl's friends are out of the country. A few went to the beach with their hunnies. A few were just too hung over after a fun and fairly debaucherous bachelorette party Friday evening to do anything but curl up on their couches with a couple of aspirin, Gatorade and cable TV. But, dear ones, I had things to do, places to go, errands to run. So I treated myself to a staycation, spending most of the long weekend solo and, I have to tell you, I truly enjoyed myself.

Saturday, I needed to go to Pearl Paint to get a couple of things for school - so I took myself to Chinatown, braving the Saturday crowds. I love the smell of Pearl Paint. There is something in the scent, the moment I open the door that just makes me happy. All the kiddies were there with their Freshman Art lists of supplies, walking around in a clueless daze and your MatchGirl, normally not that excited to have to squeeze through the aisles teenagers, was overwhelmed with nostalgia. Normally, items procured, on a sunny Saturday afternoon, I would high-tail in out of the Chinatown tourist crowds. But not this day. Instead I took myself for a dinner of spring rolls and pho at Pho Viet Huong on Mulberry Street, totally cheap and within the unemployed gal's budget and tasty, too!

Sunday, due to the lack of power in my apartment, my to-do list was totally off-whack. So I sat on the stoop and read the paper. I cut some fabric to stictch up later (when the power was restored). I worked on my homework (yes. Nerd.). When the power came back, I watched a couple of girly movies (ooh - double feature An Affair to Remember and The Way We Were!) and when a friend called to cancel a potential evening out, that was A-OK. Sure, my laundry didn't get done, but I felt quite accomplished.

And Monday, Labor Day, itself, I celebrated with friends on a rooftop on the southside of Williamsburg - old friends, great food, silly dogs running about and an amazing view of Manhattan. Hey, a girl can't spend the whole Holiday weekend basking in her own company, can she?

Back To School

There is a lot of talk out there about how the unemployed can get some cash to go back to school in this economic downturn. A lot of it has some strings attached and a lot of it is for really specific job-training, but let's consider, gentle readers, the benefits of education not only in your hunt for a new (better, more stable) job, but how it can help in your unemployment.

Think about your days. Perhaps you are motivated and rise early in the morning, go to the gym, go for a run, etc ... Perhaps you are always on the move. Perhaps you spend the day on the couch feeling sorry for yourself. And, of course, all of this depends on what point of your unemployment you're at. Of course you look for jobs - you network, you cruise Monster and Craigslist and whatever other sites you're plaintively searching for a job on. But, do you have projects? Things that you're working on which need actual deadlines?

Tonight, your MatchGirl starts class at FIT. Fall semester, with a handful of young and fresh-faced students? It's just one class and yes, it's towards a greater goal of not only a job, but of a career. A career in something I'll enjoy - as opposed to a career that's there for a paycheck. However, dear ones, I gotta say, as my unemployment lingers, I am excited to start a class. To have a schedule that's for something greater. Even if I wasn't looking for a change in career, I believe that taking a class is a great idea. It gives you structure. It makes you committed to being somewhere, every week, and accomplishing things for this class. It gives your days different purpose than just looking for a job.

I'm taking a class at FIT. The semester has started, but they have lots of weekend classes and continuing ed programs and, as a SUNY school, they are very reasonably priced. Check out the evening and weekend classes online here. Anyone else have great places that the unemployed can "better" themselves? I know some people take classes at 3rd Ward and Noble Desktop. Anything else?