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| U.N. Faces Scrutiny Over Unpaid Intern Who Slept in a Tent in Geneva | U.N. Faces Scrutiny Over Unpaid Intern Who Slept in a Tent in Geneva |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| United Nations officials are facing pressure to revisit their unpaid internship policy after an intern who had been living in a tent near Lake Geneva resigned and called for “interns all over the world” to unite in a fight for their rights. | United Nations officials are facing pressure to revisit their unpaid internship policy after an intern who had been living in a tent near Lake Geneva resigned and called for “interns all over the world” to unite in a fight for their rights. |
| The intern turned activist, David Hyde, a 22-year-old from New Zealand, said he could not afford housing in Geneva while working at the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. He had been stowing most of his belongings in a backpack under his desk at the conference’s offices, The Tribune de Genève reported on Monday, and he was sleeping outside near a beach frequented by United Nations workers. | |
| Two days after the news report, Mr. Hyde announced his abrupt resignation and sounded a clarion call: “Interns all over the world need to come together and push for the recognition of our value and our human rights.” | Two days after the news report, Mr. Hyde announced his abrupt resignation and sounded a clarion call: “Interns all over the world need to come together and push for the recognition of our value and our human rights.” |
| In calling for a global crusade against unpaid clerical work, Mr. Hyde, who had worked at the United Nations for only nine days, said he had known the internship offered no remuneration and admitted that he had lied to get the job. He told recruiters that he had the means to pay for his living expenses, he said, only after losing other internships when he told the truth. | In calling for a global crusade against unpaid clerical work, Mr. Hyde, who had worked at the United Nations for only nine days, said he had known the internship offered no remuneration and admitted that he had lied to get the job. He told recruiters that he had the means to pay for his living expenses, he said, only after losing other internships when he told the truth. |
| Even as he took responsibility for his immediate situation, he called on other recent university graduates looking to enter the international work force to stand up and be counted. | Even as he took responsibility for his immediate situation, he called on other recent university graduates looking to enter the international work force to stand up and be counted. |
| Citing the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Mr. Hyde said, “Everyone who works has the right to just and favorable remuneration.” | Citing the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Mr. Hyde said, “Everyone who works has the right to just and favorable remuneration.” |
| Mr. Hyde is not the first ambitious job seeker to have spoken out against working for free, but he might be the only one to have called to task an organization that declares in one of its founding treatises that, “everyone, without any discrimination, has the right to equal pay for equal work.” | Mr. Hyde is not the first ambitious job seeker to have spoken out against working for free, but he might be the only one to have called to task an organization that declares in one of its founding treatises that, “everyone, without any discrimination, has the right to equal pay for equal work.” |
| Mr. Hyde insisted on Wednesday that the United Nations did not compel him to take the unpaid job nor did it force him to quit. “The U.N. was clear about their internship policy from the start,” he said in a statement to reporters. “No wage or stipend, no transport help, no food allowance, no health assistance. I understood this and in that regard I have to take responsibility for accepting the internship in the first place.” | Mr. Hyde insisted on Wednesday that the United Nations did not compel him to take the unpaid job nor did it force him to quit. “The U.N. was clear about their internship policy from the start,” he said in a statement to reporters. “No wage or stipend, no transport help, no food allowance, no health assistance. I understood this and in that regard I have to take responsibility for accepting the internship in the first place.” |
| The policy applies to unpaid internships established through the secretariat, said Stéphane Dujarric, a spokesman for United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, in a telephone interview on Thursday. Other parts of the United Nations, such as the International Labor Organization and the Food and Agriculture Organization, offer paid internships or stipends. | The policy applies to unpaid internships established through the secretariat, said Stéphane Dujarric, a spokesman for United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, in a telephone interview on Thursday. Other parts of the United Nations, such as the International Labor Organization and the Food and Agriculture Organization, offer paid internships or stipends. |
| Mr. Dujarric said that it was unlikely that Mr. Hyde’s call for action would result in a quick policy change because of the United Nations’ complex budgetary process, but he said officials were concerned that only affluent candidates are able to accept the unpaid internships. | Mr. Dujarric said that it was unlikely that Mr. Hyde’s call for action would result in a quick policy change because of the United Nations’ complex budgetary process, but he said officials were concerned that only affluent candidates are able to accept the unpaid internships. |
| “The problem with this policy that exists is that it does skew the internship toward people that have the means to travel,” Mr. Dujarric said. | “The problem with this policy that exists is that it does skew the internship toward people that have the means to travel,” Mr. Dujarric said. |
| Ahmad Fawzi, head of the United Nations information service in Geneva, told the BBC that the program offers other perks, such as reduced food prices in the cafeteria. | Ahmad Fawzi, head of the United Nations information service in Geneva, told the BBC that the program offers other perks, such as reduced food prices in the cafeteria. |
| “I feel this young man may not have done his research,” Mr. Fawzi said. | “I feel this young man may not have done his research,” Mr. Fawzi said. |
| Ian Richards, the executive secretary of the United Nations’ Geneva Staff Council, said that the policy also prohibited Mr. Hyde’s managers from providing him with financial assistance. | Ian Richards, the executive secretary of the United Nations’ Geneva Staff Council, said that the policy also prohibited Mr. Hyde’s managers from providing him with financial assistance. |
| “In the case of David, his colleagues were very concerned with his welfare and were offering to help with accommodations,” Mr. Richards said. | “In the case of David, his colleagues were very concerned with his welfare and were offering to help with accommodations,” Mr. Richards said. |
| He said the internship program, which is limited to graduate students, prevents the United Nations from attracting the top candidates, who choose paid internships from other groups to offset the high cost of living. This leaves some United Nations agencies with students who are overwhelmingly from developed countries. Mr. Richards said that only two out of the 162 interns in Geneva are from developing nations. | He said the internship program, which is limited to graduate students, prevents the United Nations from attracting the top candidates, who choose paid internships from other groups to offset the high cost of living. This leaves some United Nations agencies with students who are overwhelmingly from developed countries. Mr. Richards said that only two out of the 162 interns in Geneva are from developing nations. |
| Ruchir Ferrero Sharma, who was the chief of social affairs for the Geneva Interns Association in 2012, said Mr. Hyde’s situation highlighted a longstanding problem faced by interns there. | Ruchir Ferrero Sharma, who was the chief of social affairs for the Geneva Interns Association in 2012, said Mr. Hyde’s situation highlighted a longstanding problem faced by interns there. |
| Supplying a picture from Facebook, Mr. Sharma said that a 107-square-foot room could rent for about $1,200 a month, and that a lack of online listings for rooms meant that it was not uncommon for new interns to sleep at a railway station on their first nights in town. | Supplying a picture from Facebook, Mr. Sharma said that a 107-square-foot room could rent for about $1,200 a month, and that a lack of online listings for rooms meant that it was not uncommon for new interns to sleep at a railway station on their first nights in town. |
| “In a city well-known to be among the most expensive, not just in Europe, but in the world,” he wrote in an email, “unpaid interns at the U.N. find themselves in an incredibly precarious financial situation.” | “In a city well-known to be among the most expensive, not just in Europe, but in the world,” he wrote in an email, “unpaid interns at the U.N. find themselves in an incredibly precarious financial situation.” |
| Activists for paid internships are hoping to start a discussion when the General Assembly meets this fall, Mr. Richards said, but added that the secretary general or a member state would have to introduce a formal proposal for the policy to change. | Activists for paid internships are hoping to start a discussion when the General Assembly meets this fall, Mr. Richards said, but added that the secretary general or a member state would have to introduce a formal proposal for the policy to change. |
| For his part, Mr. Hyde, the former unpaid intern, said he hoped that the United Nations would live up to its own ideals. | For his part, Mr. Hyde, the former unpaid intern, said he hoped that the United Nations would live up to its own ideals. |
| “I hope to see the United Nations become a role model for all on the issues of internships,” he said. | “I hope to see the United Nations become a role model for all on the issues of internships,” he said. |