Slavery was finally outlawed across the British Empire in 1833. In some of London’s PR agencies this summer, you might be forgiven for thinking we’ve skipped back in time 200 years.

A piece in last night’s London Paper took The City to task for what it called an exploitative approach to internships, making the case that many employers are using it as a form of cheap or slave labour. Graduates desperate to get on the jobs ladder were taking unpaid positions with little realistic chance of employment in a desperate hope to bolster their CVs, it said.

And from what I’ve seen recently in PR, agencies can be guilty of exactly the same. Too many young people, graduates in particular, are agreeing to work for agencies for nothing. They’re getting little or nothing out of it other than a (fairly meaningless, in my opinion) reference on their CV to having done some skivvy work. At a time when agencies have to align resources directly with fee income and many, many entry-level personnel are desperate for jobs, my sense is that too many agencies are crossing the line and taking an irresponsible, exploitative approach. If I’m wrong, say so. But I doubt many would hold their hands up anyway.

Of course, work experience schemes, internships and other short-term initiatives are part and parcel of the industry, and an important way for many students and graduates to get a taste or the job and build skills. My own work experience included stints on newspapers getting bricked by gypsies and interviewing politicians (both daunting experiences).

Yet as agencies we shouldn’t be taking the piss. If we’re offering work experience schemes, they should be well structured, we should share a statement of intent with those taking part and our staff, and we should be looking to give each participant a valuable experience of working in PR.

If we have a graduate training scheme (and many agencies do), it should also offer fair payment, realistic opportunities, and be straight with grads about their progress and opportunities with the company. We should not blur the lines between unpaid work experience, short-term support contracts and a graduate intake.

Speed has had several people doing work experience and short-term support roles this summer. I hope that we’ve given them valuable insight and I know that even if they’re working for free we have paid their travel and associated costs. We’ve got them working in a support role on client accounts so they gain real experience. And I hope (they said they did) that they’ve felt like part of the team.

If PR agencies ever get into the waters of what amounts to slave labour, our reputation in the labour market and beyond will take a big knock. We’ve got to play the game responsibly. Doing so will help us unearth talent and support our staff effectively.

* this is purely an evocative headline. I don’t do slavery.