In the age of no free lunches, the legality — and morality — of the unpaid internship is still under heavy debate. Former Harper's Bazaar intern Diana Wang's lawsuit isn't the first time the fashion industry has come under scrutiny for its demanding internships, but it certainly has brought some controversy to the issue. Various industry sources have already expressed doubt as to the validity of the suit, but Buzzfeed scoured court documents and found some new info that makes it look even more dubious.
First, the facts: Diana Wang was the head accessories intern at Harper's Bazaar last year and is currently pursuing a federal class-action lawsuit against Hearst, the magazine's parent company, along with a handful of other interns. She claims the publication violated labor laws regarding unpaid internships, which basically require that the company not rely on the intern in any way for necessary day-to-day tasks. If you think that sounds extreme, you're not alone — the best unpaid internships come from environments where the intern's work is important and highly valued. Still, in an ideal world, those interns would get some cash for their hard work (and that standard is actually already changing at many companies). But, does that automatically validate Wang's lawsuit? We're not so sure.
Buzzfeed reports that, according to documents from Hearst's legal team, Wang wasn't exactly the greatest intern in the first place — she reportedly gave wrong addresses to other interns making deliveries, and put the company at risk of losing products lent by various high-end accessory brands. Worse, she violated Hearst's policy that all interns must prove they are receiving school credit, pulling out of her post-grad program at Parson's after securing the internship and using instead a letter from her undergrad Ohio State. Hearst released the following statement to the media: “The plaintiff in this case, Xuedan Wang, misrepresented that she was a student, when in fact, she was not. The facts will show that this case is without merit."
There's no doubt that unpaid internships cater to young people from privileged backgrounds, especially in expensive locales like NYC, and too many internship programs offer little actual experience, other than proficiency at coffee runs in exchange for extremely long hours. If she was unhappy with her internship and wanted to draw attention to this relevant issue, we would be all for it — but suing seems extreme and possibly an ill-intentioned reaction. What do you think? Does this case have a point, or is toughing it out all part of getting your foot in the door in a competitive industry? (Buzzfeed)
Photo: Courtesy of Fox 2000 Pictures.