Ms. ‘Lean In’ Sheryl Sandberg Called ‘Exploitive’ over Unpaid Intern Job

August 14th, 2013. By AbiK

Say it isn’t so! You have to love social media—where everything you (or your hired minions) say can, and will, be held against you. Enter Sheryl Sandberg, author of the much-talked-about “Lean In” book and COO of Facebook. Ms. Sandberg, herself, did not apparently say anything on Twitter, but one of her minions, Jessica Bennett—who ‘heads up editorial’ for Ms. Sandberg’s Lean In team (whatever that really means) did tweet something about an available gig as an unpaid intern on the Lean In team.

That was on Tuesday. Today, according to a post over at Gawker, there had also been a post by Bennett on Facebook that offered up the gig.

Read More: Summertime and Many Unpaid Interns Misclassified, according to the California Labor Law

Ordinarily, it might sound like a great opportunity. But, given how much Ms. Sandberg is probably reaping financially from both Facebook and her book sales, why is the job “unpaid”? And isn’t it a bit at odds with the whole Lean In female empowerment thing? Take risks! Sit at the table! Seek challenges! But, by the way, if you’re goal is to sit at MY table, don’t expect to receive a dime from me.

Not to mention, last we looked, an intern is supposed to be learning something on the job—this job description sounds like the Lean In team is looking for more of a seasoned pro. Here are the requirements for the unpaid intern:

“Part-time, unpaid, must be HIGHLY organized with editorial and social chops and able to commit to a regular schedule through end of year. Design and web skills a plus!”

You have to love the chutzpah there. Note to Ms. Bennett: Merriam-Webster defines “chops” as “expertise in a particular field or activity”. Hmm. That would seem to be at odds with the requirements of an unpaid intern who would typically come to a company in order to be trained on-the-job.

Oh, but it’s all for the prestige of getting dumped on to promote Leaning In!

For kicks, here’s the image of Bennett’s Twitter post that appeared over at Gawker (note the comments):

 

 

Here’s some advice for Ms. Sandberg and her Lean In team: practice what you preach…walk the talk (ugh, hate that saying but the shoe fits) and pay your damn interns. Otherwise, maybe you should refund everyone who bought your book; after all, it’s starting to sound a bit like consumer fraud…

Tags: Employment, Lean In, Sheryl Sandberg, unpaid interns, Wage and Hour

This was posted on Wednesday, August 14th, 2013 at 11:40 pm and is filed under Consumer Fraud, Emerging Issues . Feel free to respond, or trackback. Read our comments policy.