Designers are being asked to do unpaid work during the hiring process — and it's time to end it.

Across the UX and product design industry, candidates are routinely asked to complete multi-hour “design challenges” that solve real business problems. These assignments often resemble actual product work — strategy, wireframes, research, conversion ideas — yet candidates are not compensated, and companies face no obligation to hire or credit them.

In any other field, contributing potential business value without pay would be unacceptable. Design should be no different.

The solution is simple:
If a design exercise asks candidates to generate concepts, strategy, or assets that could benefit the company, they should be compensated for their time.

This isn't about avoiding skill assessments — it’s about ending unpaid speculative work disguised as hiring.

By signing this petition, you are calling for:

✅ Industry standards that prohibit unpaid design exercises with commercial value
✅ Compensation when a company requests work that could impact their product, metrics, or revenue
✅ Hiring practices that respect candidates' time, expertise, and ideas

Designers deserve fairness. Companies deserve accountability. The industry deserves better.

Sign to demand ethical hiring practices and compensation for design work — even during interviews.