The first full-time job I had, when I was 18 (in 1980), was as a prep cook in a popular restaurant (still in existence.) I was hired with no prior experience and was paid to train on the job from the first day. I left that job after a couple of years and went into the manufacturing industry, with no prior experience, and was also put directly into a paid training program from the beginning. I wouldn't have ever considered working for free, even for a few hours. Now, apparently, unpaid internships are more common...
Unpaid jobs: The new normal? - Fortune Management