Three quarters of C+D readers believe it is wrong to offer unpaid internships to pharmacists, a poll has revealed.

Offering such placements to trained pharmacists was taking advantage of an increasingly competitive job market, said 74 per cent of the 456 respondents to the web poll, conducted between June 16 and July 7.

The remaining 26 per cent believed unpaid internships could be a good way for young pharmacists to gain enough experience to secure a full-time, salaried position.

Independent pharmacy employers told C+D they were broadly against the concept of unpaid placements. The "obvious danger" was that some employers would exploit the situation by taking on a series of interns with no intention of offering any of them a paid position, said James Bryce, superintendent of Silversands Pharmacy, Kent.

Not paying pharmacists "completely devalued" the profession and employers should expect to pay their interns at least the minimum wage, Mr Bryce added.

Graham Phillips, owner of Manor Pharmacy Group, (Wheathampstead) Ltd, Hertfordshire, branded unpaid positions "exploitative". Pharmacists who had shown their dedication to the profession through years of training deserved to be paid for the work they did, he stressed. "These people are valuable – they're highly skilled, they're committed to our profession and they deserve to be treated decently," Mr Phillips told C+D.

Independent Pharmacy Federation (IPF) chair Fin McCaul pointed out that internships could provide inexperienced pharmacists with the skills needed to prepare them for their career. "For them to come out and get some experience to work in different areas is really beneficial," he explained.

But Mr McCaul said interns who contributed to valuable work in a pharmacy deserved financial remuneration for their effort.

Last month, C+D reported that one pharmacy company was offering a manager role as an unpaid six-month internship.

Should aspiring pharmacists be willing to complete unpaid internships? Employers debate whether they are a useful way of gaining experience or sheer exploitation

	Are unpaid internships exploitative or an opportunity?