# Working interviews: what to expect and whether you should be paid

> What a working interview or trial shift involves, what US Department of Labor rules say about pay for real work, and the questions to ask before you agree.

- Canonical URL: https://jobbie.bot/blog/working-interview
- Topic: [Interviews](https://jobbie.bot/guides/interviews)
- Published by [Jobbie](https://jobbie.bot/) · Updated 2026-10-06 · 8 min read

A working interview is a tryout in which you do the actual job for a few hours or a shift while the employer watches how you work. In the United States, whether you must be paid depends on wage law, not on what the employer calls the session. The Fair Labor Standards Act defines “employ” to include “to suffer or permit to work,” so when you do real work for a covered business, Department of Labor rules point to pay of at least the minimum wage for those hours.

Agree on the pay, the hours and the duties in writing before you show up.

## Key takeaways

- A working interview means doing real tasks: seeing patients, serving customers, running a station. Answering questions or briefly showing a skill is ordinary interviewing.
- The Department of Labor guidance cited here has no separate category for working interviews. Work an employer suffers or permits is work time.
- The federal minimum wage for covered, nonexempt employees is $7.25 an hour. Where a state minimum is higher, you are entitled to the higher one.
- The exception for unpaid trainees is narrow. All six of the Department’s criteria must apply, including that the business gets no immediate advantage from what you do.
- If you worked and were not paid, ask in writing, keep records, and contact the Wage and Hour Division at 1-866-487-9243 or your state labor agency.

## What is a working interview?

It is an audition on the job. Employers use working interviews where skill is easier to see than to talk about: dental and veterinary practices, restaurant kitchens (where it is often called a stage), salons, retail, childcare and the trades. You may also hear it called a trial shift, a job audition or a paid trial.

A typical session lasts from a couple of hours to a full shift. You are usually paired with a staff member, given real tasks, and watched for skill, pace and how you treat customers and colleagues. It works in both directions: a shift tells you more about the workload and the people than any [question you could ask in an interview](https://jobbie.bot/blog/questions-to-ask-in-an-interview).

## Do you have to be paid for a working interview?

The federal guidance cited here does not use the phrase “working interview.” The answer comes from the general rules of the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division.

1. **Being allowed to work is being employed.** By statutory definition, “employ” includes “to suffer or permit to work.” The Department’s fact sheet on hours worked adds that work an employer did not request but allowed is still work time that must be paid for.
2. **Work time is paid at the minimum wage or more.** The federal minimum wage for covered, nonexempt employees is $7.25 per hour. Many states set their own, and where both apply you are entitled to the higher rate.
3. **Agreeing to work for free does not settle it.** The Department’s guidance on volunteers says that, under the FLSA, employees may not volunteer services to for-profit private sector employers.

Put together, a tryout in which you do productive work for a covered business looks like employment for those hours, whatever it is called. Employers who run working interviews carefully often pay through payroll for the day or bring candidates in through a staffing agency.

> **Note:** This is general information about US federal law, not legal advice. The FLSA does not cover every employer or every job, exemptions exist, and state law may give you more. For your own situation, contact the Wage and Hour Division or your state labor agency.

## When can a tryout be unpaid?

Two situations fall outside the rules above.

**A skills test that is not work.** Typing a sample document, cooking a dish that is not served, or demonstrating a technique on a model produces nothing the business uses. That is an assessment, like answering interview questions, and employers generally treat it as unpaid.

**A real training program.** The Supreme Court has held that people who work for their own advantage on someone else’s premises, with no agreement about pay, are not automatically employees. The Department’s guidance says trainees are not employees if all of the following apply.

1. The training, even if it uses the employer’s facilities, is similar to what a vocational school would give.
2. The training is for the benefit of the trainees.
3. The trainees do not displace regular employees, and they work under close supervision.
4. The employer gets no immediate advantage from the trainees’ activities, and its operations may even be impeded.
5. The trainees are not necessarily entitled to a job at the end.
6. Both sides understand that the trainees are not entitled to wages for the time.

A trial shift rarely fits. If you cover a station, serve paying customers or treat patients, the business benefits immediately, and you may be doing work a regular employee would otherwise do.

| What you are asked to do | How to think about it |
| --- | --- |
| Tour the workplace, meet the team, watch someone work | Part of an interview |
| Complete a short test that the business does not use | An assessment, normally unpaid |
| Work a shift, serve customers or produce work the business uses | Likely work time under the “suffer or permit” definition |

A working interview is not an internship either; [how to get an internship](https://jobbie.bot/blog/how-to-get-an-internship) covers how unpaid internships are treated.

## What to ask before you agree to a working interview

Get the answers by email or text, so they are in writing.

- **Pay.** What is the hourly rate, how will I be paid, and when?
- **Time.** What date, what hours, and is this one session or more?
- **Duties.** What will I be doing, and who will I be working with?
- **Paperwork.** Do I need to complete anything first, or bring a license or certification?
- **Practicalities.** What should I wear, and are tools and protective equipment provided?
- **Safety.** Who do I report to, and am I covered if I am injured?
- **Outcome.** Is this the final step, and when will you decide?

```Email confirming a working interview
Subject: Working interview on [date]: confirming details

Hi [Name],

Thank you for inviting me to a working interview for the [job title] role. So that I arrive prepared, could you confirm the following?

- Date and hours: [date], [start time] to [end time]
- What I'll be doing and who I'll be working with
- The hourly rate for the session, and how and when it will be paid
- Anything I should complete or bring, including my [license or certification]

Thank you,
[Your name]
```

## What to expect during the session

- Arrive early, dressed for the work. If you are unsure, [what to wear to an interview](https://jobbie.bot/blog/what-to-wear-to-an-interview) covers practical and clinical settings.
- Ask how the team likes a task done before you start it, and say what you are doing as you go. It shows your reasoning and lets someone stop you before a mistake.
- Do not do anything you are not licensed or trained to do, even if asked.
- Note your start and finish times.
- Before you leave, ask for feedback, confirm how you will be paid and ask when you will hear. Send a [thank-you email](https://jobbie.bot/blog/thank-you-email-after-interview) that evening.

## Warning signs in a working interview

- Any request that you pay for something first, such as training or a background check. That is a [job scam](https://jobbie.bot/blog/job-search-scams) pattern, not a tryout.
- “We only pay if we hire you.”
- A full unpaid shift, or repeated trial days.
- Several candidates rotated through unpaid shifts for the same opening.
- Being left to work alone with customers or patients.

## What to do if you were not paid

1. **Write down the facts** while they are fresh: date, hours, tasks, who supervised you, and every message about the session.
2. **Ask in writing.** Some cases are oversights, and a clear request settles them.
3. **Contact the Wage and Hour Division.** You can call 1-866-487-9243. The division says complaints are confidential and that an employer cannot retaliate against a worker for filing one.
4. **Check your state labor agency** as well. State wage laws can be stronger than the federal one.

```Message asking for pay after a working interview
Hi [Name],

Thank you again for having me in on [date]. I worked from [start time] to [end time] on [tasks]. Could you let me know when and how I'll be paid for those [number] hours? I'm happy to complete any payroll forms you need.

Best,
[Your name]
```

## Frequently asked questions

### Do employers have to pay you for a working interview?

In the United States, the Fair Labor Standards Act defines “employ” to include “to suffer or permit to work,” and the Department of Labor treats permitted work as paid work time. If you do productive work for a covered business, that points to at least the minimum wage for those hours. This is general information, not legal advice.

### How much should I be paid for a working interview?

At least the minimum wage that applies where you work: $7.25 an hour federally for covered, nonexempt employees, or your state’s rate if it is higher. Many employers pay the normal hourly rate for the role. Agree on the rate and the payment date in writing before the session.

### Does it matter if I agreed to work for free?

An agreement alone does not settle it. The Department of Labor’s guidance says that, under the FLSA, employees may not volunteer services to for-profit private sector employers, and its test for unpaid trainees has five other conditions besides a shared understanding that no wages are due. The Wage and Hour Division can help you assess your own facts.

### Is a working interview the same as a probationary period?

No. A probationary period comes after you are hired: you are an employee on the payroll from the first day. A working interview happens before any offer. If you are doing real work in either case, the same wage rules are the ones to check.

### Do I still get paid if I do not get the job?

Pay for hours worked does not depend on the hiring decision. If the session counted as work, it counted whether or not an offer followed. “We pay only the candidate we hire” is a reason to ask for the arrangement in writing before you agree to come in.

## Sources

- [U.S. Department of Labor: Fact Sheet #22: Hours Worked Under the Fair Labor Standards Act](https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/fact-sheets/22-flsa-hours-worked): the definition of “employ” and pay for work that is suffered or permitted.
- [U.S. Department of Labor: FLSA Advisor, Trainees](https://webapps.dol.gov/elaws/whd/flsa/docs/trainees.asp): the six criteria for a trainee not to be an employee.
- [U.S. Department of Labor: FLSA Advisor, Volunteers](https://webapps.dol.gov/elaws/whd/flsa/docs/volunteers.asp): no volunteering of services to for-profit private sector employers.
- [U.S. Department of Labor: Minimum Wage](https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/wages/minimumwage): the federal minimum wage and the higher state rate where both apply.
- [U.S. Department of Labor: How to File a Complaint](https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/contact/complaints): the Wage and Hour Division’s phone number, confidentiality and retaliation protection.