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Comment by Ansil849 | Hacker News Reader

How is this legal?

Not a rhetorical question. I genuinely would like an explanation of how you can legally post "Applicants must understand there will be no compensation for this position" in a job posting, when minimum wage laws dictate the minimum wage that can be paid for employment.

Specifically, in California [1]:

> Although there are some exceptions, almost all employees in California must be paid the minimum wage as required by state law.

The 'exceptions' are for learners (those with little experience), the mentally ill, and the disabled, which all have different wage laws (none of which allow any of those groups to be employed for free either).

[1] https://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/faq_minimumwage.htm

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What about volunteer work? Has that been banned?

Volunteers are exempted from minimum wage requirements. But there is nothing in this job posting indicating that this is for a volunteer position.

> But there is nothing in this job posting indicating that this is for a volunteer position.

This position is unpaid at a public not private employer. In this case the commonly understood meaning of "volunteer" is likely the same as the legal one.

By definition, I think working without compensation is volunteering?

If you pay someone more than $0, that’s when you need to pay them at least minimum wage.

So an interesting caveat to this apparently is [1]:

> FLSA prohibits public sector employees from volunteering, without compensation, to work additional time performing the same type of services or work for which they are employed. For example, a police officer can properly be considered a volunteer, and need not be paid, for reading to school children at the municipal library. The same officer must be paid, however, and cannot be considered a volunteer, when directing traffic for a city-sponsored road race in the same municipality where the police officer is employed.

So I guess if you already have a position in another state school, you apparently can't take this one.

[1] https://www.wardandsmith.com/articles/wage-hour-law-voluntee...

> Volunteers are exempted from minimum wage requirements. But there is nothing in this job posting indicating that this is for a volunteer position.

The "without salary basis" looks pretty clear to me, and I'm sure someone holding a PhD could spot that as well.

Isn’t that clear from that it is unpaid?

Funny thing about the law right? Even beef, raised outside the US can be called American Beef if processed here.

It isn't of course. It's patently illegal. As well as just plain slimy and awful.

Which is what makes this episode so juicy. First the language was not in the least ambiguous -- the post means exactly what it says. And from the fact someone (if not multiple people) not just at PhD level, but reasonably high up the totem pole in that department must have signed up on post.

"signed off on that post" - sorry.

There are limited exceptions for interns as well, but those cannot replace a paid position and must be enrolled in a school at which they will receive credit for the internship.

I'm really wondering what this job posting is about as well.

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