The semester is coming to an end. Several students are preparing to start a summer job in order to gain relevant experience. Now, however, more people are experiencing that the contracts they have signed are being terminated shortly before commencement.
Recently, kode24 wrote that 15 students, among others from NTNU, were summoned to an “information meeting about the start-up” in Trondheim, only to be told that their contracts have been terminated. President of Tekna, Elisabeth Haugsbø, says that the problem is increasing.
– Our lawyers report that there is a growing problem with the cancellation of employment contracts. We constantly receive inquiries from students who lose their job before it has started, she tells Universitetsavisa.
Made a “blacklist” of consultancy firms
Almost nine out of ten newly graduated master’s students are in work within six months
NTNU students Anders Rodem and Mikkel Svartveit were fed up with the consulting companies putting students in a difficult situation by terminating contracts shortly before commencement.
– We have many friends who have lost their jobs that way. We thought there should be a list of companies that do this, says Rodem.
He studies industrial economics and technology management, while Svartveit studies computer technology. Now they are both on exchange in Berkeley, California, and talk to Universitetsavisa over the phone. In the hope of encouraging change in the industry, they created the website konsulentkarma.no. They call the service a “blacklist”.
– It is easy to forget from year to year who dismisses students just before commencement. Students have tight finances and need a job. This means that there is an imbalance of power between the companies and the students, says Rodem.
– It gives a lump in the stomach
He believes that several companies take advantage of this power imbalance. After the friends launched konsulentkarma.no, they have received well over a hundred tips about students who have been dismissed.
– Much is very frivolous. We have seen resignation emails and hear about the way people are dismissed. It gives a lump in the stomach, says Rodem.
Konsulentkarma.no is a list of Norwegian companies they claim have canceled contracts with students regarding summer jobs and permanent employment. Some information is given about what the cases are about, and if available, sources are also referred to. However, some of the workplaces are listed without information, since konsulentkarma.no also accepts anonymous tips.
Rodem nevertheless says that they are not looking to take anyone, or hang out companies.
– We would rather inform you that a contract can be canceled and that the job is not guaranteed until you have started. Not least that you have to be careful with some companies, he says
A “situation” delayed the announcement, now it is clear who won the election
Universitetsavisa has spoken to several of the companies mentioned on konsulentkarma.no. See what they answer at the bottom of the case.
Not a good way to treat the students
According to the Tekna president, there is a lot of competition to recruit students. Therefore, several companies start the recruitment of students for summer jobs early, preferably a year in advance.
– The problem with this procedure is that many companies do not know whether the need will be there in a year’s time, or whether the finances are in place for hiring. As a result, we get such job cancellations, says Haugsbø.
She believes it is problematic that the consulting companies terminate the students’ contracts shortly before commencement.
– It is not a good way to treat students and those new to working life. Employers have a responsibility when they sign contracts with students. They must know that they have finances and tasks before they advertise summer jobs.
Students should think about it
She says that it can be experienced as dramatic for the students if they lose their jobs just before they start. One of the reasons is that the students potentially lose important income, but for many the summer job is also a practice which is compulsory in many of the technology studies.
– The summer job is also an important stepping stone into working life for many, she says.
According to Haugsbø, there is also a legal dimension to the cancellation of contracts. It is something that Tekna’s lawyers are looking into more closely. At the same time, Haugsbø says that the job market for Tekna students is good. Although the students are still in demand, she encourages them to think twice before signing contracts early.
– They are welcome to contact Tekna’s lawyers. There will always be uncertainty associated with contracts with start-up far in the future, and then it might be wise for some experts to look over, she says.
UiT succeeds where NTNU lags behind
There are solutions
Neither Svartveit nor Rodem is affected by the problem, and both have secure summer jobs when they return home from exchange. The founders of konsulentkarma.no understand that several companies have to dismiss several of their summer students due to a more demanding market.
– Ultimately, you cannot hire students if the finances are not in place. Then it becomes a necessary evil to fire them, says Rodem.
He still believes that the companies have a responsibility to give the students good follow-up and help afterwards. He also encourages them to plan better, and believes there are solutions.
– When the interview rounds are more than a year before they start, it is difficult to plan. One solution could be to move the interview rounds to the spring. But then both the companies and the students have to come together about it, he says.
– Raises contracts with a heavy heart
Universitetsavisa has been in contact with several of the companies mentioned on konsulentkarma.no. Several of these have recently terminated the contracts of their summer students.
Among these companies is Netlight. Responsible partner in Netlight, Andreas Blomquist, writes the following by e-mail:
“We confirm that we have had to make tough choices in order to adapt to the change in the market. We are in an uncertain market with fewer assignments and greater competition than before. It is therefore with a heavy heart that we have had to cancel several contracts for colleagues who were due to start this autumn and for students for our summer internship.”
He was asked what he thinks about Netlight putting several students in a difficult situation, as well as what the company is doing to help them further. He does not want to answer this for the sake of those affected.
In January, it became clear that Itera also had to terminate several contracts. Director of Communications at Itera, Ole Morten Damlien, responds as follows by email:
“We understand the students’ desire for transparency around these issues. We listen carefully to all the feedback and will use it as an opportunity for learning and development going forward.”
– We are sorry
Forte Digital is also mentioned on konsulentkarma.no. Last year they were in a difficult situation after dismissing several students shortly before commencement. Press officer Tobias Grimstad talks about a tough market:
“Like the rest of the industry, we have experienced a tougher market in the last two years than it has been before. When the market is now tough, there is often less demand for young people and rather consultants with senior expertise. We go to great lengths to continue to retain young people on the way up and forward, but at the same time want a greater debate about how AS Norge should handle that situation. We must all take our responsibility and think long-term. It is the young people who are the future.
We think it is sad that it turned out this way, but that this was a necessary decision as the market looked then and still bears its mark. This is not the outcome we had envisioned when we planned for the appointments, and we are sorry that it has turned out this way,” he writes in an email.
Brevid is the company that recently summoned the summer students to an “information meeting about start-up” and then announced that their contracts had been terminated. They have not responded to our inquiries.
Follow UA on Facebook and Instagram.
