When sex works

[drlove 37202]

[I]Labour solidarity for sex workers has come a long way, but more can be done[/I]

Jenn Clamen and Kara Gillies

MONITOR
Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, January/February 2016

[URL="https://www.policyalternatives.ca/sites/default/files/uploads/publications/National%20Office/2016/01/Monitor_Jan-Feb2016.pdf"]https://www.policyalternatives.ca/si...an-Feb2016.pdf[/URL]

In 2013, IN R. v. Bedford, the Supreme Court of Canada declared three of Canadaâ??s prostitution laws unconstitutional, recognizing that criminal laws against prostitution contribute to the harms perpetrated against sex workers. The new sex workâ??related laws, introduced by the Conservative government (Bill C-36) in 2014 in response to the ruling, bear a striking resemblance to the ones that had been struck down a year prior, both in theory and application.

As the bill made its way through Parliament, many people and organizations allied with sex-worker rights groups spoke up against it, including LGBT rights groups, AIDS service organizations, womenâ??s groups, agencies working to end violence against women, and also, notably, unions. In Canada, sex workers have attempted for years to garner the support of the labour movement, and more recently unions like CUPE and OPSEU have made public their support for total decriminalization. But why is sex work a union issue in particular?

Sex work is rarely perceived as a form of work, but rather as a social problem that requires elimination or containment. Sometimes this entails viewing sex work as a morality issue, other times it involves constructing sex work as a negative manifestation of womenâ??s sexual exploitation or an individual pathology. While issues of economic insecurity and violence are at play in some sex workersâ?? lives, they do not define who sex workers are or what sex work is about. Instead, we believe a more accurate definition is achieved by understanding sex work the way the workers themselves experience itâ??as a means of generating income and supporting themselves, their families, their needs and their aspirations. In a word, sex work is work.

Understanding sex work in these terms is easier when we have a better sense of what the work is about. Whether working in massage parlours, in strip clubs, on the street or in other locales, sex workers are providing services of both a physical and emotional nature as well as interacting with clients, colleagues, management, other third parties and the physical work environment. These interactions involve negotiating labour issues such as pay, work hours, services, professional responsibilities, and occupational health and safety. Like workers in other sectors, those in sex work worry about low wages, personal and workplace safety, the ability to take time off when they are sick, and access to state and employer benefits that enhance both their own and their familiesâ?? wellbeing.

Unfortunately, the stigma surrounding most forms of sex work, and the accompanying resistance to treating it as â??realâ? work, have hindered sex workersâ?? ability to access basic labour rights, including those of minimum wage, reasonable hours, enforceable contracts and secure working environments.

These obstacles are compounded by the continued criminalization of many aspects of sex work, especially prostitution. The purchase of, communication for, advertising of and receiving a material benefit from sexual services are all illegal. Sex workers are directly criminalized if they communicate for work purposes in public places, as well as marginalized and subjected to violence and exploitation by criminal laws that make the actions of third parties and clients illegal. The absurdity of these prohibitions becomes clear when one contemplates their hypothetical application to other work sectors.

Imagine working as a mechanic, but it being illegal for your customers to purchase your services, or for you to hire staff. Or envision being a hairstylist who is unable to advertise, or whose clients are unable to communicate what haircut they want and what price they are willing to pay. These are ludicrous scenarios, yet sex workers are currently legally required to work under such circumstances if they wish to avoid surveillance, arrest and incarceration. Needless to say, most workers are unable to meet these requirements.

The criminalization of third parties creates further complications when it comes to realizing the labour rights of sex workers. Because the workerâ??third party relationship is often criminalized,many sex workers have difficulty addressing exploitation in their workplace, and seeking rights and protections under employment laws and before labour boards.

There are many supporters out there of sex workersâ?? rights, but others see sex work as distinct from similar workersâ?? struggles. We challenge this belief. While workers in every sector have their own specific sets of concerns, the commonalities override the differences. This is particularly true in the case of workers who have been cast to the margins of the labour market, and particularly for migrant sex workers, who have been the prime targets for arrest, detainment and deportation, especially since the implementation of C-36.

Similar to sex workers, growing numbers of working people in multiple sectors have been relegated to the rank of independent contractor, denying them the various benefits associated with employee status. Women workers, including those in sex work, make up the majority of the part-time, contingent, temporary labour force and this precarious status undermines their economic security, ability to negotiate working conditions, and organizing efforts.

Migrant workers, including those in some erotic trades, are rendered vulnerable through the governmentâ??s foreign worker programs, which create a market of temporary, expendable, underpaid labourers who lack the rights of either workers or citizens. Migrants who donâ??t have formal status under these or other programs are further illegalized and left vulnerable to exploitation and abuse.

In an effort to overcome these barriers, sex worker rights groups have been visible for over 40 years in Canada, educating the public about sex work as an income-generating activityâ??as work. Part of this means promoting and upholding labour rights and labour protections for a diversity of workers in sex work, and recognizing informal labour that takes place on the street and other public spaces.

It also means fighting for recognition that all forms of sex work constitute legitimate labour and that sex workers are entitled to the same basic labour rights as other working people. These include the right to recognition and protection under labour, employment and contract laws; the right to work independently, collectively or for third parties; the right to enforceable work contracts (as independent contractors or employees); the right to labour organizing, whether in the form of professional associations or unionization; and, finally, the right to be free from criminal prosecution and other repressive state interference.

KARA GILLIES AND JENN CLAMEN ARE SEX-WORKER RIGHTS ACTIVISTS. IN 2003, THEY FOUNDED THE NOW DEFUNCT CANADIAN GUILD FOR EROTIC LABOUR AND ARE CURRENTLY INVOLVED IN SEX WORKERâ??LED MOVEMENTS FOR TOTAL DECRIMINALIZATION OF SEX WORK.