Is Sex Work an Inherently Exploitative Industry?
This blog is meant to be a thought-provoking exercise inviting all our readers to consider the nuance of the numerous legal and moral discussions that, to this day, still exist around sex work globally.
There are MANY perspectives on sex work, all of which touch differently on women’s freedom, the impact on communities, and how it should be addressed legally.
In sociology, there are two main views on sex work: the oppression paradigm and the empowerment paradigm. Broadly speaking, the oppression paradigm is characterized by a goal to end sex work altogether and often considers sex workers as victims. The empowerment movement, on the other hand, believes sex work is one of many ways women (and sex workers in general) can exercise their agency and considers sex work another valid form of labor. See below for the main characteristics and principles of each.
Original graphic based on the information in ‘Sociology of Sex Work’ by Ronald Weitzer (2009)
There is, however, a third approach that aims to merge the two paradigms—it recognizes that both empowerment and oppression can exist within sex work. Now, this approach doesn’t stop acknowledging the difference between sex work and sexual exploitation or sex trafficking. Suggesting they are somehow the same falls closer to the oppression paradigm where all sex workers are victims and have no agency whatsoever.
This third approach, called the polymorphous paradigm, recognizes that the circumstances of sex workers can vary in relation to:
The type of sex work they engage in
The involvement of others
Locational and structural aspects
Aspects related to gender and race
“Both the oppression and the empowerment paradigms are one-dimensional. Although exploitation and empowerment are certainly present in sex work, there is sufficient variation across time, place, and sector to demonstrate that prostitution cannot be reduced to one or the other.”
— Ph.D. in Sociology Ronald Weitzer
The polymorphous paradigm opens the door to more intersectional analysis; in other words, it allows for more nuance to be factored in when evaluating the implications of sex work. Thus, aspects like gender, socioeconomic status, ethnicity, nationality, skills, education, migration status, and so many others play a role when deciding whether or not a situation is exploitative.
Discussing frameworks like this can help guide us on where we stand regarding sex work. But one thing remains true; we’ve gotten stuck in moral and theoretical debates about sex work, wasting precious time that could be invested in protecting sex workers.
Why This Discussion Matters: The Labor Approach
Is any job truly freeing? Is working for a salary inherently empowering?
Sex worker Tilly Lawless makes a powerful point in her TED Talk ‘Sex work is integral to the feminist movement’ when she says, “Nobody asks whether you are empowered by your job before they decide to fight for a minimum of working conditions.” Let that sink in. Take a moment to ask yourself if we approach other jobs this way. We don’t go around having conversations about whether or not delivery people are empowered by their work; we simply provide them with legislation that allows them to do this job while having the peace of mind that basic human rights are owed to them.
“Empowerment is not a prerequisite for human rights. In fact, being given sexual rights is a step towards empowerment, not the other way around.”
— Sex Worker Tilly Lawless, Sex work is integral to the feminist movement
The Merriam-Webster Dictionary states to work is “to perform work or fulfill duties regularly for wages or salary.” Sex workers are providing sexual services to other consenting adults for an established fee. And yet, they face unimaginable challenges while on the job thanks to stigma and lack of support.
According to The Crown Prosecution Service, “Sex workers are often targeted for harassment and violence because they are considered immoral and deserving of punishment.” In 2015, SWAN found 280 instances of physical or sexual violence among the sample of 301 sex workers interviewed. Disturbingly, one out of five interviewees also experienced physical violence at the hands of police.
“Evidence suggests that offenders deliberately target those who sell sex because they believe they will not report the crime to the police.”
— Legal Guidance, Sexual offenses, Prostitution and Exploitation of Prostitution
And as if that wasn’t enough, seeking counseling or help is a challenge of its own. Sex work is either considered a crime or restricted by most countries, which can end up causing sex workers to work alone, trust no one and avoid law enforcement.
Many sex workers sidestep seeking counseling and resources due to “psychological abuse from staff at hospitals, drug treatment services, and shelters.”
Sex work is also linked with increased HIV/AIDS rates, and sex workers are defenseless when seeking assistance. The United Nations Development Programme, along with UNAIDS, ran a study about law, HIV and human rights in the context of sex work and found that “violence against sex workers, perpetrated by police or military personnel, contributes to HIV vulnerability.”
What Does the Labor Approach Look Like, Then?
The labor approach falls under a polymorphous paradigm, and its core principle is that sex work is work. According to the Goblal Network of Sex Work Projects (NSWP), “advocacy for the recognition and protection of sex workers’ labour rights is a central issue around which sex workers organise in all regions. This advocacy sees commonalities between sex work and other forms of intimate labour, predominantly undertaken by women, which have gender, class and race dimensions and are often informal, undervalued and underpaid. It views the sex workers’ rights movement as part of a broader struggle for economic justice, offering the possibility of alliances and knowledge-sharing with other global movements.”
Benefits of this approach, according to the NSWP, include:
Legal protections
Reduced stigma
Setting standards for decent work and reduced exploitation
Freedom to organize and unionize
Reduced violence and police harassment
Improved occupational health and safety
Improved access to social protection
Improved access to social services and resources
Free choice of employment
Alliances with other workers and broader social movements
Are We Making Sure People Are Freely Choosing This?
The last bit of food for thought I’d like to provide you with is the following:
Knowing that some forms of oppression can exist within the sex work industry, are we really making sure people aren’t coerced by ANYTHING when entering the world of sex work? In other words, are we giving people enough good options to achieve financial stability and meet their most basic needs other than sex work?
“A refugee with dependent children in a war zone is less empowered to insist that a passing soldier uses a condom than an escort in a wealthy country, who may be supplementing her income to buy a better car.”
— C Harcourt, B Donovan; The many faces of sex work
According to Open Society Foundations, “The vast majority of sex workers choose to do sex work because it is the best option they have. Many sex workers struggle with poverty and destitution and have few other options for work. Others find that sex work offers better pay and more flexible working conditions than other jobs.”
Are we working to make survival easier so that no one has to end up in a job that preys upon their vulnerabilities and offers insufficient protections? Sex work, in some cases, is just one example of this—other people might end up in informal jobs or doing ‘dirty’ work most likely no one wants to do, working long hours for little pay.
“Nearly every one of these women is a mother, or has someone depending on her. They are driven into this life by economic conditions…you don’t do any good by attacking us. Why don’t you attack those conditions?”
— Attributed to Reggie Gamble in 1917. Quoted from ‘Sex Workers Are the Original Feminists’
Ensuring that sex work becomes a job people can choose safely will happen when we stop criminalizing sex work and start respecting sex workers’ human rights while also revising the systems we’ve built and reckoning with how they oppress people.
