Unpaid interns win summary judgment in 'Black Swan' case, class certified

A federal judge has awarded two unpaid interns summary judgment against Fox Searchlight Pictures Inc. for their work on the 2010 film “Black Swan” and certified a class action lawsuit over the studio's internship programs.

The interns, Alexander Footman and Eric Glatt, alleged in 2011 that Searchlight abused the unpaid internship program and violated federal labor laws, according to a Tuesday ruling by a New York federal judge.

The interns said they performed menial tasks such as arranging travel plans, making coffee and janitorial work, among other duties, according to court records.

In his ruling, U.S. District Court Judge William Pauley said that the interns were classified improperly as unpaid. Instead, they are “employees” covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act and New York labor law, the judge ruled.

Additionally, unpaid internships at for-profit businesses must train interns and the employer derives no immediate advantage in that educational environment from the interns, according to the ruling.

However, the interns in this case “worked as paid employees work, providing an immediate advantage to their employer and performing low-level tasks not requiring specialized training,” Judge Pauley wrote.

Additional plaintiffs, including Eden Antalik, who participated in parent company Fox Entertainment Group Inc.'s internship program, were added to the suit in 2012 and they sought class certification.

Judge Pauley granted Ms. Antalik class certification based on her Fair Labor Standards Act and New York labor law claims.

“Antalik has identified several common questions relevant to determining (New York labor law) violations, including … whether defendants derived an immediate advantage from interns' work, whether interns displaced regular employees and whether FEG's internship program was for the benefit of interns,” Judge Pauley wrote.

Fox Entertainment Group said in published reports that it would attempt to overturn the ruling.