Could my employer have tricked me into accepting poor terms?

After many months of job hunting, I got a placement as an intern. I train diploma students in the field of beauty and cosmetology and mark their exam papers, yet I earn Sh10,000 a month. Could my employer have used my lack of experience to employ me on meagre pay? How can I address this with her?

You should first appreciate the opportunity and the confidence your employer has in you to allow you train diploma students as an intern. However, whether an intern should be tutoring and supervising exams for diploma students is a discussion for another day.

Most organisations consider internship programmes as a pool of talent from where they can get candidates to consider for employment in future. Therefore, the experience you are currently accumulating may give you a competitive edge if your employer considers you for any future engagements.

At this point of your career, money is important, but should not be a major consideration. The stipend you are getting is to cater for your transport and lunch. You should concentrate on gaining experience.

Have you considered having a side hustle to supplement your income? Beauty is one of the fastest growing industry and there are numerous opportunities where you can monetise your services.

Does the college require you to be there on full time basis? Find out whether you can work on flexi time to enable you acquire more experience in other beauty parlours. This way, you will be a better tutor since you will be sharing your experience with your students, and not just what you’ve read in books. This will be more powerful and will give your students a better grasp of the lessons. You might also earn a few coins while at it.

I am certain that if your employer sees the additional value you are bringing, he or she might consider improving your terms. For now, look at the glass as half full and not half empty. Appreciate the current opportunity and give your employer your best.

Jane Muiruri
Senior HR Manager,
Nation Media Group
[email protected]