(NOTE: Please do not share your opinion about zoos/aquariums in this post. We are entitled to our own opinions regarding the institutions, but this post is about the treatment of the workers specifically and not pertaining to the animals themselves.)
So, I'm a zookeeper. I went to school for it, did internships (all unpaid, see title of post for reasoning), and have since struggled to find employment in the field (if you saw my COVID/government post on here). I have two personal accounts of how companies take advantage of their worker's love for animals and how there will likely not be much done to change that
When I was in college, I interned first at a zoo and next an aquarium 5 days a week (40hrs+) unpaid during the summer. I did this for two summers because it was the only way to get into the industry. You need to know people and have experience doing the job before they pay you for it. So for two summers, I made zero income and worked my ass off taking care of various zoo animals and doing exactly what my mentors were doing, the only difference between them and myself is I wasn't paid for it. In a way, to be a zookeeper you kind of have to bank on the fact you have parents to financially support you during your intern period when you're unpaid. Some places even make you pay them for the opportunity to intern. I had to pay $500 to intern one time. Some of you may read that and say “just walk away and find somewhere else!” But it's either that or I don't intern at all. And there are not very many aquariums and zoos to have a solid pick. I either got the experience and paid the money or I didn't intern and made it much harder for myself to find a job in that field in the future. They will only hire you if you have experience.
At lunch one day, the keepers I was working with were talking about how it was best to marry someone with a well paying job so that us as keepers would always be financially stable. To put it into perspective, entry-level zookeepers (fresh out of college) at most places pay ~$2-5 above minimum wage. Ex) minimum wage is $13, entry-level keepers made $16-18. The most senior level keepers, although I can't give a specific hourly, make ~55k/year. This changes based on location and company, but it's a general rule of thumb.
Basically, when I was getting into this industry they told us to accept the fact we would never be making enough money to live comfortably without extra assistance (spouse, family, second job, etc.) Many zoos and aquariums will explain that they cannot pay their keepers more because a lot of their income goes to the care of these animals and being able to work with animals everyday and doing something you love is to them a very fair trade off for not being paid well. Meanwhile, they continue to pay their CEOs and other office staff a fair wage. I've spoken to multiple trainers, many who have a second job they work on their off days to make ends meet. Others are fortunate to have spouses with better jobs.
My point is, we are all being taken advantage of for our love of animals and working with animals. Everyone wants to work with animals, who wouldn't love to spend every day interacting with sloths and elephants? These companies know that those who are serious about working with animals will do anything to work with them. Like take an unpaid internship, accept low pay, etc. Keepers always worked overtime and would sometimes have to be at work all night or as early as 4:30am to fulfill the needs of an animal. Zookeepers are some of the most selfless people I have met and put the animals before themselves. Yet they are compensated poorly for their passion.
My other story involves the pet health industry (veterinary services) and how vet offices will do the same to their staff as well, especially those considered low on the totem pole such as vet techs and front desk receptionists. I never had a first day at this vet office because I pretty much walked out during my interview. This also was a specific experience I had with a specific company that owned multiple vet offices. I cannot say the same for small run vet offices and hope they are better than what I witnessed. I'll explain what I noticed while there as to why I left:
I got a call from a recruiter for a large veterinary company that had multiple locations in the city I live. They wanted me to apply to be a “front-desk receptionist” someone who answered calls, booked appointments, helped customers pay their bills, etc. Basically the first person that someone sees when they bring in their pet. I had been struggling to get into the zoo-keeping field and was looking to work with animals in anyway possible. So I applied and was interviewed by the same recruiter over the phone. I was told I would be making anywhere between $18-20/hr based on experience and it was a job where I would have to multitask a lot. She forwarded my resume to the vet office, who later reached out to have another interview with their HR department.
I went to the interview and was asked pretty much the same questions as the recruiter did. It was going normally, no red-flags yet. The first red-flag was actually when she explained the job to me, saying that front-desk receptionists would often have to take on the roles of vet techs and would be trained partly as a vet tech. This meant that I would fill in for vet techs if needed with any of their responsibilities. So on top of running a busy front desk where phones had been ringing off the hook since I first walked in, I would also be helping with blood draws or anything needed of me. I asked more about it and was explained that they were often short-staffed and everyone who worked with the animals needed to be adaptable to all positions. Ok…
When it was my turn to ask questions, I mentioned an estimated salary as the job post did not mention one and the recruiter had given me a pretty broad range on the phone. She asked me how much the recruiter had told me and said “oh no, receptionists make $14-16 an hour based on experience. Because you haven't worked in a vet office before you would probably start with $14.” I was shocked to hear that, $14 is the minimum wage here and in the job requirements it lists that they are looking for someone with a Bachelor's degree in biology. I just did four years of college to work minimum wage at a vet office? AND they wanted me to take on the responsibilities of a vet tech? I would've been more onboard with doing that if I was compensated for that, but it seems they were also only paying their vet tech staff at most $18. I shut the interview down pretty quickly after and left… their reasoning was also that because we are working with animals, we should be ok with the pay.
This is a bit of a rant but the animal industry isn't really the most popular one out there, so many might not know of how much they truly try to gaslight and coerce you into thinking you're being ridiculous for asking for better pay when you get to work with animals everyday ffs!