Does the intern work alone?

The internships that students carry out in companies are part of their training process. This means that the objective is not to meet the needs of the company, but to allow them to understand the real functioning of the company and complete the knowledge acquired during their studies. Thus, internships cannot lead, in any case, to the substitution of the labor provision typical of job positions.

To act correctly, the company must do the following:

• Designate a tutor and supervise the activities carried out. The student must learn by observing, participating, and receiving guidance, not acting autonomously as if they were another worker. To this end, the tutor must be a person linked to the company, with professional experience and knowledge to provide effective guidance.
• Respect the tasks outlined in the educational cooperation agreement signed with the university. The further the functions performed deviate from the initially planned training activities, the greater the risk of non-compliance.
• Register interns with Social Security, whether paid or unpaid. Registration does not, by itself, grant the status of a worker if the educational purpose is maintained.

It is important to avoid having the student perform tasks alone; this can ultimately distort the educational purpose of the internships. If the student acts with the autonomy of an ordinary worker, the presumption of labor status is activated and they may become a "false intern" (they may claim their status as indefinite and the salary set in the agreement for their category; and the Inspection will sanction the company for committing a serious infraction, in addition to claiming the contributions accrued since the beginning of the employment relationship, with a surcharge of 20%).