Trainees fear being turned into 'cheap labor'

Every internship season, students are eager to step out of the lecture hall. But not everyone has the experience they want.

Some interns find opportunities, others are exhausted - Photo: AI

When real-life experience becomes a burden

HTTD - a third-year student majoring in English at the Banking University of Ho Chi Minh City - once had a short internship at a real estate company in Thu Duc, and was promised a monthly allowance of 3 million VND.

“I work all week during summer vacation, from 8am to 5pm, and I also work on Saturdays. Every day I travel from Bien Hoa to Thu Duc, about 15-17km,” TD said.

However, TD was suddenly fired. At first, the manager said “not suitable for capacity”. TD found this reason unconvincing so he texted to ask again. A month later, the internship supervisor said he had “misheard” the manager’s intention.

TD suspected that the company intentionally let her leave early to avoid paying allowances, because her working time was only exactly 15 days.

When TD contacted again to ask, she received a message saying that the company “could not afford to pay”. They also used the excuse that TD “had not submitted her resignation letter” to delay, even though she had not signed an employment contract. After TD submitted the letter as requested, the company remained silent and did not respond again.

TD shared that many young people applying for internships here also encountered such "difficult" situations.

TD’s main job during the internship is recruiting staff, the task is to recruit sales staff to sell real estate by posting on recruitment platforms such as Facebook and Top CV. The target that an intern like TD needs to achieve is about 2-4 people/month.

NKH - a fourth-year student at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities (Ho Chi Minh City National University) - had to end her internship early due to exhaustion.

KH interned at a so-called magazine, but actually operated as an event organization, with the hope of learning how to create content and communicate. Although the job description was clear, KH's actual workload far exceeded his imagination.

Initially, KH only needed to come to the company 2-3 days/week, but because of the continuous events, KH was required to work all week like an official employee, sometimes even working until 12am and both weekends.

“I have to take on many roles, from writing content, finding news, designing images, to posting articles. Especially having to work with customers, supporting them in making contracts and often having to interact with 3-4 customers at the same time to carry out an event.

When there are no events, I have to support the filming sessions, including receiving guests, talking to guests, preparing equipment and checking images. When there are events, I run logistics, serve, transport, order food, and even sit at the reception desk," KH shared.

KH commented that the tasks he undertakes are no different from those of an official employee. However, the allowance is only 2 million VND/month, equal to half of your living expenses in Ho Chi Minh City.

The promises of “officially being hired if there is a vacancy” gradually became vague. “There are interns here who have been interning for 12 months and still have not been officially promoted,” KH confided.

What are the regulations on internship?

MSc. Mai Hoang Phuoc - Photo: NVCC

MSc. Mai Hoang Phuoc (Faculty of Law, University of Economics and Law, Ho Chi Minh City National University) explained: “Current laws, specifically the 2019 Labor Code, do not have a clear definition of the concept of student internship. Therefore, this activity is currently in a legal 'gray area', which many businesses can take advantage of to save on personnel costs.”

According to him, it is necessary to distinguish the following three cases:

If it is a simple “internship”, students only observe and learn. The law does not require businesses to pay allowances, unless there is an agreement with the school or a separate policy.

If it is an “internship” that produces products according to Article 61, Clause 2 of the Labor Code, the enterprise must pay salary for the value that the student creates.

If it is “disguised labor”, meaning students work as official employees, under management and supervision, then this relationship has the nature of labor. In that case, not paying wages violates Articles 90 and 91 of the 2019 Labor Code.

Therefore, businesses using the name "intern" to avoid signing contracts, not paying salaries or not paying social insurance are violations of the law.

“When encountering problems during the internship, students should proactively talk to the person in charge or the HR department, preferably via email to have evidence. At the same time, they need to keep documents showing that they are working as real employees such as work assignment emails, completed products, and timesheets,” Mr. Phuoc shared.

In case of non-resolved issues, students should report to their instructor or the school's career support center for protection.

“More importantly, before doing an internship, you must carefully research the company, read the agreement clearly and boldly refuse if you see signs of exploitation. Internships are for learning, not for being exploited,” said Mr. Phuoc.

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Source: https://tuoitre.vn/thuc-tap-sinh-so-bi-bien-thanh-lao-dong-gia-re-2025110912371859.htm