The unpaid workforce

Parents often cry at graduation ceremonies. They are eager to see what their sons and daughters will become, proud of the accomplishments about which they can already boast to their friends and thrilled to be finished dealing with the stresses of the big, bad bursar bill.

My mom refers to this type of catharsis as “happy tears.” It’s an oxymoron with which she is very familiar.

My high school graduation was like a four-hour-long “happy tear” convention. So was my first day of kindergarten, my seventh grade choir concert and every dance recital since I was 3 years old.

My mother is the happiest crier in the whole world.

Unfortunately, this year, the tears at college graduations across the country are going to be the classic “sad tears” for parents of many graduating seniors. Sure, they might be finished paying for college. But the new trend involves continuing to pay to support their children’s journeys into our generation’s reality: the unpaid workforce.

Due to the nation’s troubled economy, companies aren’t looking to hire. Many can’t even afford to keep their current employees.

Luckily for these companies, recent college graduates are desperate for experience. They need something to put on their resumes and opportunities to network. They take on unpaid internships and accept entry-level job titles without the gratification of a paycheck.

Since they have no way to earn a steady income, many are turning to their parents for the financial support they’ve come to expect – and actually need.

I can’t think of any sensible alternatives to this arrangement, so as a sophomore, I fear this will be my fate two years from now.

For many of my peers, continuing to enjoy the benefits of having parents with a steady paycheck might seem like a dream come true. But how long can we continue living off of our parents until it becomes detrimental to our development?

The unpaid workforce is a scary concept for graduating seniors – especially since they have no way of knowing when they will finally start making cash. It might feel like a black hole sucking them into the world of dependence.

It’s pretty frightening for underclassmen as well. They are in the market for unpaid internships; they can still get college credit for their work.

If graduates are applying for the same internships as underclassmen, the underclassmen are at a disadvantage. They have less experience, fewer credentials and other priorities. They have less time to devote to their jobs because they are working around their class schedules.

Underclassmen and graduates are in a similar fiscal situation. But society expects underclassmen to need the financial support their parents offer. Those without a paying gig after graduation look like mooches or bums.

The future of the economy is unknown, so perhaps seniors should be trying to figure out a more beneficial way to spend the now-obligatory time in limbo. I’m pretty sure there’s got to be a better option than slave labor.