Unpaid internships are so last summer…Unless you’re an intern on Capitol Hill.
If Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid lived in the real world without the litany of congressional exemptions that excuse him from the rules others have to follow, he would have violated federal minimum wage laws by not paying intern Jessica Pardon, a sophomore from the University of Nevada.
Reid could argue that his employment offer fostered an “educational opportunity” but that excuse seems to be arbitrary, since any work experience is somewhat educational. In this case, Pardon could teach Reid a lesson or two about fundraising for the next election cycle.
The aspiring lobbyist can’t afford to live in Washington without any income, so she has turned to crowdfunding to bankroll the experience, which she calls her “dream internship.”
According to her online campaign on IndieGoGo, a popular crowdfunding website, Pardon needs to raise at least $6,500 to cover her expenses during her five-month stint in the nation’s capital. She has already raised more than $3,000, and has about 13 days left to go before the campaign ends. If she can’t reach her goal, she says she won’t be able to accept her internship.
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Though Pardon’s use of crowdfunding is unique, the method of raising money through online campaigns is becoming increasingly popular. Crowdfunding is being used by students to pay for college and by entrepreneurs to help fund their business start-ups.
In 2012, sites like Kickstarter, RocketHub, Quirky, and many others raised a total of $2.7 billion by more than a million individual campaigns across the world, according to a report by Massolution , a research firm specializing in crowdfunding. By the end of the year, the crowdfunding industry is expected to grow to $5.1 billion.
Reid’s office has not yet commented on Pardon’s fundraising efforts or her newfound fame, though the majority leader might not be crazy about how much attention his unpaid internships are getting.
