This article draws on research with adult sex workers in indoor settings in Great Britain to explore diverse forms of self-employment, employment relationships and small business development, set within the context of changes to the wider economy. It suggests the need for recognition of sex work as legitimate labour, as a prerequisite for policy changes to support sex workers and pave the way for improved working conditions, not only in managed settings but also facilitating collective arrangements and independent lone working. Sex work remains a highly contested topic in policy debates. It has been argued that an ideology equating prostitution with gendered exploitation has influenced twenty-first century policy formation in the USA, the UK and parts of Europe Weitzer, However, this model has been criticised on many grounds, particularly because it appears to have resulted in a more dangerous and stigmatised working environment for sex workers Levy and Jakobsson, The failure of policy discourses to recognise sex work as legitimate work, and to include sex workers in discussions, impedes development of initiatives to improve their labour rights and working conditions. Recognition of sex work as a form of labour, however, does not preclude considerations of exploitation or interrelated issues such as labour market segregation and relative power and disadvantage. Moreover, viewing sex work through this lens can inform policy, through highlighting diverse experiences within the industry, drawing parallels with other forms of work and identifying ways to facilitate safer and more supportive working environments.
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Outside the sex sold legally in Nevada, prostitution in the United States transpires in the shadows of an underground economy. There are no accounting records to trace, no receipts to scrutinize, and no legal records to analyze. Simply, it is difficult to grasp the size of this economy. But a groundbreaking study released by the Urban Institute sheds new light on how much money is generated by the underground commercial sex economy in American cities. Knowing the size of the economy is the critical first step for enabling law enforcement, the judicial system, and policymakers to make informed choices about how to fight the harm that happens within these black markets. The research yields the first scientifically rigorous estimates for the revenue generated in the underground commercial sex economies of Atlanta, Dallas, Denver, Miami, San Diego, Seattle, and Washington, DC, in and
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The Sex Industry. Many women earn all or part of their living as sex workers or in other areas of the sex industry, including pornography, nude dancing, telephone sex, and computer pornography. Once politically voiceless and isolated from other women, sex workers have organized over the past 25 years for support and political action. Poverty that forces women, especially women of color and runaway teenagers, into work as sex workers. Sexism in the job market that means that even middle- and upper-class women can earn more in sex work than in most other jobs available. Race, Class, and Violence Against Women.
