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Page 1 of 3 INTERNSHIP PROGRAM 1. Purpose The City of Woodburn provides opportunities to current students to earn academic credit toward completion of a degree, to develop and work on thesis or practicum projects, and to gain practical work skills and experience in a professional environment. 2. Types of Internships City of Woodburn offers two types of internships: 1. Paid and 2.Unpaid Internships. The number, level and content of internships vary each year. Most internships are scheduled for part-time work during the school year and full-time in the summer. The wages for the paid positions are based on the academic level of the student (Associate’s, Bachelor or Graduate level). The interns are subject to pre-employment checks such as background, criminal history and other department specific inquiries as required in the announcement and may be required to have a driver’s license and meet the City’s driving standards depending on the position. All interns are provided with the same protections as employees under the employment discrimination laws in Oregon Revised Statutes, Chapter 659A.350. Also, a student may not be an unpaid "intern" during the school year, become a paid employee during the summer, and revert to an unpaid "intern" status when school begins. Departments interested in engaging an intern may submit a written request to Human Resources Director that includes a definition and scope of work for the internship position, eligibility requirements for the internship, as well as duties that could be undertaken by the intern. 3. Paid Internships: Paid internships are posted on City’s recruitment platform as any other job. To submit for a paid internship, applicants must follow the instructions in the recruitment announcement. Applicants ---PAGE BREAK--- Page 2 of 3 must be currently enrolled in a post-secondary educational program leading to a certificate or degree or be within six months post-graduation. Applicants who are current students must be in good standing with their educational program and remain in that program throughout their internship. Students may work full-time during the summer without being enrolled; however, they must be returning to their educational program and pre-registered for the fall term. Applicants must also be considering a profession related to some aspect of the City's business objectives. Generally, interns should be advanced enough in their educational programs to have begun taking courses in a field related to their work at the City. However, in some cases previous work experience or education may substitute for their current academic program of study. Paid Interns are considered at-will, seasonal employees, and are not eligible for benefits or paid leave such as vacation, personal leave, or holidays. Paid interns may be eligible for Oregon Sick Leave per the provisions of the state law. Federal and state mandated leaves (e.g. FMLA, USSERA, etc.) are available to paid interns that meet the established guidelines and/or requirements for the applicable leave. This leave is unpaid, and the intern is required to notify the assigned department of any anticipated leave within a reasonable time (as early as possible). 4. Unpaid Internships: The City may partner with local colleges and universities to provide relevant and hands-on internship placements as available throughout the academic year in a variety of City departments. These internship requests come from the students’ internship program coordinators and/or career counselors. The Human Resources Department will search for available placements in the City that align with the students’ internship requirements. Unpaid interns are not employees for minimum wage or benefits purposes. Based on the U.S. Department of Labor’s guidance, unpaid internships must meet the following factors: •The training, even though it includes actual operation of the facilities of the employer, is similar to that which would be given in an educational environment; •The extent to which the training is tied to a formal education program with integrated coursework and academic credit; •The extent to which the program accommodates academic commitments by corresponding to the academic calendar; •The extent to which the internship’s duration is limited to the period of beneficial learning; •The extent to which the internship complements rather than displaces the work of paid employees while providing significant educational benefits; •The interns are not necessarily entitled to a job at the conclusion of the training period; and ---PAGE BREAK--- Page 3 of 3 •The employer and the intern understand that the intern is not entitled to compensation for the time spent in training. The intern candidates must provide a letter or statement on the institution’s letterhead, from an authorized official at the institution confirming the student applicants’ eligibility to receive academic credit after completion of the internship program; and must, provide two letters of recommendation from a professor, instructor or counselor and submit the internship requirements and deliverables. 5. Internship Position Monitoring An internship is a planned program to provide a student with a meaningful learning experience applicable to the student’s field of study. This requires structured assignments coupled with appropriate supervision, evaluation, and feedback. Learning objectives will be developed when considering a student internship opportunity. An intern's direct supervisor is responsible for regularly reviewing the duties performed by the intern to ensure that they are engaged in meeting their learning objectives. Intern supervisors may also be responsible for completing an outside institution's timesheets, work reports, or other documentation for the internship. All supervisor responsibilities should be well known and understood before an intern's start date. For interns who are under the age of 18, child labor law requirement to obtain an employment certificate and other child labor laws do not apply. 6. References BOLI, Interns and Trainees Fact Sheet City of Woodburn Human Resources Rules, Revised 2023 FLSA, Internship Programs Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, Fact Sheet #71 ORS 659A.350 Civil Rights Protections for Interns 7. Review of Policy and Procedures This policy will be reviewed every three years or as state and federal regulations are revised and necessitate a change in the policy or procedures. Adopted: March 2021 Revised: October 2024