Do I Have to Pay Interns

[fstep]

My question involves employment and labor law for the state of: New York

i own a small marketing agency and wanted to know whether i'm required to pay interns a salary? can i pay them on strictly commission basis?

[cbg]

Because this question is potentially complicated, suppose you start by telling us how you define an intern, and exactly what they will be doing.

[fstep]

intern - college student i will have do work for my company in exchange for me teaching them various marketing methods. they will be selling my services (advertising, consulting, website development, etc). they will do sales primarily online using the methods i teach them, but will have the option to go to businesses and pitch in person as well.

[cbg]

Are they getting college credit for the work they do?

[fstep]

Are they getting college credit for the work they do?

yes they are

[cbg]

Then you *may* not have to pay them. However, the circumstances under which an intern can be unpaid are few, far between, and very much restricted. (ONLY outside salespeople can be paid on commission only.) They are not unheard of, but they are uncommon. I would STRONGLY recommend that you consult with an employment attorney, or call the US DOL, to determine if your situation is among them.

[aaron]

The DOL provides some guidance, here.