1

Avery Cotten

Lackey

ENG 1023

22 November 2018

Sex Work Legalization and Proper Implementation through Government

Regulation

Sex work is legally defined as commission made by a person to engage in sexual activity

for monetary exchange. The sex industry has boomed with the introduction of technological

advances to make it far more accessible and off the streets. Days of survival sex work through

women working the streets is becoming outdated through the use of prostitution and escort ad sites,

in combination with “camming” at home through webcams, expanding porn to not be expected as

free media but be paid for, to even a rising creation of VR porn. Sex work is an industry estimated

at $14.6 billion with over a million prostitutes in the US. (Rosen) In contrast, the United States net

worth for pornography is at an all time high of $97 billion. This amount grossed more than the

NFL, MLB, and NBA combined. Surprisingly enough, porn sites have more visitors than most

household name sites such as Amazon, Twitter, and Netflix. The visitation and amount paid to

these sites is expected to double as VR headsets are commercialized for at-home use. (Suster) Sex

work is becoming an inescapable and highly profitable modern part of our culture but still has a

highly risky tag of criminalization attached, why? Christian-judeo beliefs for centuries have

shamed sex work for causes of morality in combination with government regulations over women's

bodies. As a new modern era approaches us with rising beliefs of empowerment and personal

ownership over women’s bodies, prostitution has caught a call to action for legalization. This

legalization has been proven successful to increase community health through reduction of STD
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transmissions, decrease in rapes and violence towards sex workers, arrange social benefits

including healthcare, while also overall improving safety of the lives of thousands of sex workers.

Legalization is the only way to give justice to those who are suffering in sex work because of

criminalization. In turn, the only proper way to implement legalization for dramatic and effective

results is through a well-regulated government capacity with support through social workers and

police force, creating a market value price to sexual services, licensing for small businesses owned

by sex workers, and legislation to prevent high health insurance premiums.

The leading cause to support legalization of sex work in the United States is to reduce

violence against women. Women who work illegally on the streets are 18 times more likely to be

a victim of homicide than their non-sexworker counterparts. This includes the high rates of assault

and rapes, 82% and 68% respectively in the Bay area of San Francisco. Although this is not just a

localized problem, it is nationwide. The most vulnerable group of women are survival sex workers,

sex workers in poverty who use sex work to barely cover their basic needs. Survival sex workers

typically work on the streets without risk reducing services such as backpage, online advertisement

sites to screen clientele, and most importantly without accessible police intervention since their

work is unjustifiably illegal. Comparatively in Nevada, all legal licensed brothels have security on

site, accessibility to call police for interventions at the slightest hint of danger, panic buttons in all

the rooms, and doors that do not lock from the inside. Brothel owners have to make great strides

to keep a good reputation to uphold their licenses given by the county. This includes maintaining

police relations and a reputation of safety for customers and workers.

Legalizing prostitution will improve community health by reducing spread of sexually

transmitted diseases as well as HIV/AIDS. It was found that in the United States only three to five

percent of STDs can be attributed to prostitution, supporting the argument that prostitutes are not
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the main vehicles of HIV and STD transmissions. Whereas legal sex workers in the United States

are required by the State Board of Health to wear condoms with all customers, dramatically

decreasing spread, and have weekly and monthly mandated STD tests. The number of prostitutes

infected with STDs in New Zealand and New South Wales, where prostitution is legalized, is

almost non-existent. In Nevada, there were no registered cases of HIV among legal sex workers.

(Valeriya) Illegal sex workers are not regulated in this manner and can be inconvenienced by clinic

prices for STD checks when they lack health insurance. The United States in the past has used sex

workers carrying condoms as evidence to incriminate them. This deterrent can largely dissuade

sex workers to forgo condoms because of fear, creating a habit of non-safe sex practices. In

legalized countries, states, or nations, having mandatory screenings by the departments of health

are essential to overall health of communities.

Equally important is the need for labor rights. Prostitution is not a hobby for many of these

women, but a full-time job that pays their expenses and contributes to their savings. Labor rights

include minimum wage, freedom from discrimination, safe work environment, social security,

retirement, and access to employer health insurance. These factors would not only dramatically

improve the lives of sex workers, but help with rehabilitation for survival or street sex workers.

Everything government sponsored boils down to one important factor-revenue. Legalizing

prostitution would create a revenue explosion in counties or states from licensing brothels and sex

workers. The estimated income for a sex worker working at least one week a month in Nevada, is

$100,000 annually. This annual pay can contribute to tax revenue starting at $20,000 based on

federal income tax. The most widely recognized estimate of sex workers in the United States is at

one million which directly equals 20,000,000 in income tax. This tax could help the United States

who is currently about $20 trillion in debt, inaccessible non-universal healthcare, declining social
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programs and benefits, poor infrastructure in rural areas, and many more drastic issues that require

revenue diverted to funding. This amount yearly would obviously not solve every single issue, but

give funding to drastically needed programs and emergency health services in counties.

The industrial prison complex in the United States is suffering from heavy financial

burdens with little to no resources. The prison system is majorly overcrowded which can be

prevented by releasing those of non-violent crimes, such as prostitution or solicitation charges.

It’s estimated that in 2010, California alone arrested 11,334 people for prostitution. In Texas, an

average of 350 prostitutes are sentenced to serve time in state prisons yearly. (Valeryia) If sex

workers were not sentenced to state or country prisons, then there would be less of a financial

burden with a lower prison population. Immediately giving relief to women’s prisons who are

already enduring hardships from lack of accessible healthcare, unsanitary conditions, and

overcrowding.

A main concern to legalizing prostitution is unexpected growth to the sex industry, which

non-supporters can be seen as harmful since it will be publicized. Those who are in favor of

decreasing the demand for sex services, such as “end demand laws”, will see that legalization

vastly instead expands the market. Prostitution was legalized in the Netherlands in 2000, in less

than a year the sex industry increased by 25%. This became 5% easily of the Netherland’s economy

within a year of legalization. (McGrew) Regardless of whether prostitution is legalized or

criminalized, sex work will always exist. Whether it is visible to the public and whether police can

find actual victims of trafficking will depend on legalization. In legalized states like the

Netherlands and Germany, the sex industry becomes a major proponent to federal funding, an

essential part to economy after the industry experiences growth, and to maintaining high rates of

tourism. Germany has seen major boosts in tourism after legalization in 2002. Weekend to month
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long trips to visit brothels has tourists from neighboring countries most notably like Italy, France,

Scandinavia, more coming in waves never seen before. There is an incredibly large displacement

of sex work demand that can be contributed to migrant buyers in the European Union. The

commercial franchise, Paradise, a famous mega brothel franchise recently expanded to the small

city of Saarbrücken, Germany. This location is five kilometers from the French border and only

an hour away from the European parliament in Strasbourg. As France increased first time offense

fine to 1500 euros, migration to seek sexual services in Germany is expected and clearly evident.

Although not all tourism revenue can directly be related to legalizing prostitution, ever since 2002

Germany has had a direct boom in tourism.

“International Tourism, Number of Arrivals Germany.”

An important risk to discuss about legalizing the sex industry is demand displacement that

could possibly be filled by immigration. Poor migrant women sex workers are a deeply vulnerable

group, whose immigration is facilitated by sex work openings. This could potentially escalate

illegal immigration of women into the U.S. to fill sex work jobs. As seen in Germany, who has

more lax immigration laws due to involvement in the E.U., saw greater migration of sex workers
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as borders within Eastern Europe were opened. As refugees come from Eastern Europe, women

turn towards sex work to make a living. More refugees come into Germany with much lower

pricing for sexual services, which in turn decreases the market value of sex work because of the

influx for survival sex work type pricing. Migrant sex workers can cause a problem with deflation

of market value prices for sex work, escalate vulnerability to trafficking attempts, and increase

already tense-border and immigration relations in America.

Under the Trump presidency, the United States have been evolving into the tatitic of “end

demand” laws for new legislation. End demand laws were initially created In 1999, Sweden

became the first to introduce a prohibition on the buying of sexual services. This penalty of buying

sexual services can range from a fine to five months in prison. As the severity of prohibition on

consumers increased, this method is thought to decrease demand of prostitution. If demand lowers,

the amount of workers will theoretically lower as well. The perspective was originally introduced

by radical feminists with a hope to eradicate prostitution completely. They believe sex work is not

the buying of sexual services, but a purchase of a woman to sexually exploit. While this view

extremely pushes the idea that prostitution is institutionalized male violence against women and

children, instead of in reality, consensual sex between two adults. (Wallace) The swedish model

completely ignores sex workers that go into this job voluntarily, not to be confused with victims

of sex trafficking. Fundamentally sex workers are not entirely poorly educated, victims of abuse,

that come from poor socioeconomic backgrounds. Sex workers come from a diverse background

that includes self determination when choosing their profession. Common motivations for selling

sexual services is high rewards (that do not require formal education or trainings), flexible

schedule, and being self managing. Studies such as Selling Sex in Queensland, reported that one

in four sex workers had a completed bachelor's degree. While a similar report conducted by
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Working in Victorian Brothels said that a majority of the sex workers had adequate or high levels

of professional and technical training. (Wallace) There is a recurring theme of sex workers

returning to this industry for personal reasons, despite completing training or having a professional

career. Not only is end demand laws making consensual sex workers who enjoy their profession

invisible, but also the laws have not overall made a significant impact on trafficking or decreasing

demand for sexual services. Prostitution can never be accurately measured in an illegal market

because of its secrecy and an increasingly underground electronic presence. As a test to see if the

Swedish model decreased demand, Swedish public radio stations posted fake ads for sexual

services on websites in May, they were swamped with almost a thousand inquiries. This shows a

large amount of the population is still seeking sexual services despite criminalization charges, it is

not a powerful deterrent. While these sexual services can still be bought at home, Sweden has seen

a rise in migration of men that travel to other countries to purchase sex. The Netherlands and

Germany, both have legalized prostitution, have seen an influx in weekend visitors to brothels. As

the EU makes crossing borders even more accessible, sex work demand is seen to rise in countries

legalizing prostitution. (Wallace) The demand for prostitution will always be there, it is the oldest

profession that will always have relevance in our society. Other methods besides “end demand”

laws need to be enforced because it is truly the consensual sex worker who compromises, not the

traffickers or clients.

Since the Trump Administration began, a blatant disregard for the livelihood of sex

workers has been committed. The administration wishes to diminish sex trafficking but makes the

consensual worker compromise her safety severely. In April of 2018, the Department of Justice

seized the website Backpage and it’s owner for violating the Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act

(FOSTA) passed by the Trump Administration. This act was intended to reduce the amount of ads
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for sexual services in the United States to minimize ads used for sex trafficking. Any ad even

mentioning sex, on any online dating service, can be used to charge for prostitution. Although this

may help curb sex trafficking, which hasn’t been statistically proven yet, it can be seen as largely

ineffective as a whole to limiting prostitution. Backpage is the most accessible harm-reducing site

for sex work, as it is taken down (along with a dozen other similar sites) it will force workers to

resume street prostitution. Which greatly increases their risks to arrest and assault. Online

advertising is seen as the most essential tool to marketing, gurantable income, and safety. It not

only gives the sex worker ways to screen clients from the safety of their own homes, but also gives

a sense of community to the workers. As backpage was shut down this not only caused a

nationwide panic for sex workers but also a loss of income for many. Taking down sites that

promote prostitution will not cease prostitution, but will force the traffickers and sex workers to

go deeper and deeper into the dark web. The dark web is much less traceable and prone to police

less interference because of the stronger cyber network security.

A leading country in the battle for legalizing prostitution is Germany. Germany became

the prostitution capital of europe, and eventually the continent, shortly after legalization in 2002,

with over 400,000 sex workers serving 1.2 million men a day in a 15 billion euro industry. This

legalization was passed by Chancellor Gerhard Schröder’s Social Democrat-Green coalition to

ideally legally hire sex workers, sue for payment in a contract, insurance benefits, and pension

plans. (Nisha) Although legalization has many positive benefits for workers, communities, health,

and lowering violence against women-implementation of legalization had little government

oversight. This poor oversight by the German government has led to mixed results that can easily

be corrected with proper legalization and greater social services. An instance of poor

implementation is only 44% of sex workers have registered for benefits in 2005. Employment of
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sex workers in Germany is very rare. To avoid liability over the workers by employing them,

instead the brothels rent rooms to the women. At an average brothel, women pay 175 euros for 24

hour use of a room. This means they must perform sexual services with at least 4 men to break

even. While the brothels are easier to open and operate in Germany than a restaurant. (Nisha) Since

brothels do not need any special licensing or registration, they only technically rent rooms. This

oversight needed further legislation to not be able to hire prostitutes as contract workers, or even

as a customer for renting rooms.

Although most German prostitutes are not technically employees, the sex industry boomed.

The rise of places to go to find and buy sexual services has increased immensely in Germany.

There are twelve story brothels throughout the country in a commercial chain, “naked clubs”, “flat-

rate brothels” (50 to 100 euros for unlimited services), caravans parked at the side of the streets,

and small inclosed areas called “sex boxes”. The going rate at a higher-caliber establishment such

as Paradise, is 50 euros for half an hour. (Nisha) Compared to brothels, online prostitution can be

incredibly dangerous. There is no way to fully screen a client and there is a lack of witnesses and

security when performing sexual services. Brothels have paid security to help sex workers. If a sex

worker is working independently she does not have this added security, unless she has a pimp,

which can add even more issues. Brothels and clubs are much easier to regulate security and

acknowledge coercion. The accessibility and visibility greatly decreases the need for street

prostitution, invisible and often untrackable dangerous web communication or auctioning of

trafficked girls, and police are able to visit brothels regularly to look for coercion.

In contrast, legalization of prostitution in Nevada has had overwhelming positive results

with further comprehensive government oversight. Legislation and proper management has made

United States legalization much different than Netherlands or Germany simply because of more
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regulation for safety. Legal prostitutes have been able to receive benefits and have a safe

workspace. Studies done on Nevada brothels have shown that women who work there are generally

happy with the majority of women having orgasms with their clients. As well as out of 50 women

interviewed at the most popular brothel, Moonlight Bunny Ranch, only 5 have ever experienced

violence which was quickly intervened by security. Legally the brothels can only be in counties

with populations less than 80,000 and not near any schools or religious buildings. This means they

are remote, usually at “ranch” type venues, away from youth or populations against prostitution.

Legalized brothel settings are much better than working illegally from home or the streets. A sex

worker will earn more at the “ranch” even after medical and licensing fees and paying the house a

share of her earnings, because she benefits from their marketing and brand. Others earn less, but

it is still worth it because legal brothels are a safer environment and it is legal. Most brothels have

scheduled times for events or classes for the girls, this includes craft times, business marketing,

and meetings with private bankers. All brothels owned by Dennis Hof, he owns the majority of

licensed brothels in Nevada, include an employee manual filled with negotiation, marketing, and

brand tips to turn sex workers into entrepreneurs. (Schrager) Legalization has drastically reduced

transmission of STD/HIV by sex workers to none, decreased violence with an increase in security,

overall the legal market prices are much higher than on the streets (pay higher to avoid risk).

To have a smooth transition into legislation, government action and oversight is essential.

In legalized countries around the world a major issue is lack of social services being provided.

This can include mental health services, regular check-in’s to workplace environment, and

thorough observation and interactions with sex workers to catch red-flags of sex trafficking. All

of these issues can be directly solved by appropriate case work management of social workers. As

seen in Nevada, brothels are kept on an up to date registry with listings of employees. This can be
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applied in all states as a policy which is carried out by counties. Once a completed registry is

collected, social workers can be sent tri-weekly, or as an as needed basis, to have case meetings,

carry out observations to report harmful practices, and give therapeutic support to sex workers.

This creates a safe environment for sex worker and social worker to meet and discuss issues or

coercion. There is a type of social worker that undergoes additional training and licensing to

become a clinical social workers. They are licensed separately to conduct diagnoses and treat

issues with psychotherapy. Not only will they be able to perceive signs of sex trafficking and better

the working environment, social workers can also provide psychological testing and

psychotherapy. Psychotherapy is talk based therapy to help improve the quality of life overall by

helping control and minimize negative behaviors. This helps foster better communication and

satisfaction in relationships to promote mindfulness. Psychotherapy has clinically been proven to

help mental illnesses, stress disorders, and overcome traumatic situations which can happen

frequently in sex work. Erin Fay, co-founder at Kipp Therapy, estimates that “In 5 years, you are

going to see therapy offered to employees at every major employer across the country as a vital

service to enhance productivity.”. There has been a major transition of bringing affordable and

comprehensive therapy services to the workplace. Most notably companies like Google, ….. Share

these accessible mental health services. It serves to increase job satisfaction and teach extensive

coping skills to deal with workplace stressors. Kipp Therapy has seen dramatic results in ongoing

studies, severe to moderate levels of depression, anxiety, and stress have been lowered to below

normal on the DSS survey. (Frey) If these modern practices of workplace therapy have been so

successful, why can’t they be extended to clubs and brothels? Traditional therapists usually have

preconceived notions of what sex workers are like due to stigma. With the rise of online streaming,

independent porn, different sex work experiences offered to buy-sex work will always be changing
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which is why it is necessary to have an educated open-minded therapist. The perception of sex

workers needs to be challenged to having sensational-seeking tendencies rather than a foundation

of sexual abuse or that they’re intrinsically damaged. Instead of rescue, emphasis on coping and

sustainability. While a shift to non-traditional types of therapy with sex work is not only beneficial-

it’s necessary. Most sex workers, especially those in low socio-economic conditions, cannot afford

therapy unless it’s free or subsidized which effects wait time in between appointments and quality

of care. (Ley) Seeing as most sex workers employed in brothels have long shifts, can be up to 24

hours of work, and how trafficking victims are not allowed to leave. This only shows that in-house

psychiatric and social work care is necessary. This allows them to receive accessible

comprehensive mental health care through a clinical social worker without ever having to leave

the job. Not only will this improve mental stability and coping of sex works, but an effective tool

for social workers to be able to spot trafficking victims.

The cost associated with hiring extra social workers that specifically have cases in the sex

work industry could easily be paid by the state. The estimated income for a sex worker working at

least one week a month in Nevada, is $100,000 annually. This annual pay can contribute to tax

revenue starting at $20,000 based on federal income tax. The most widely recognized estimate of

sex workers in the United States is at one million which directly equals 20,000,000 in income tax.

This taxation has huge financial gains that can be used to not only help sex workers, but improve

communities and social programs. In addition, the only study done on cost of law enforcement to

prostitution was in the 80’s which showed the average cost of court and incarceration fees was

over 2,000 while budgets to combat prostitution were on average at $7.5 million. (Schrager).

Obviously prostitution has a large financial strain on the police and state, which can easily be

reversed with legalization. These financial resources, such as taxation and waving budgets for
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arresting and jailing prostitutes, can be used dramatically to overall better the lives of prostitutes

and police force efficiency and budget.

An important aspect of switching to legalization is having a consistent market price for sex

services. For a basic sexual service in Nevada, the standard price in brothels runs about $400. A

more extensive service, “The Girlfriend Experience” can run up to 1,000 an hour. This girlfriend

experience is compared to street escorting which averages at $300 for the same service. Unlike

most industries, many legal sex workers are paid more than their illegal counterparts. (Schrager)

The price difference is in part due to the negotiation, which creates an opportunity for price

discrimination (charging more to customers willing to pay); prices are normally pre-set in the

illegal part of the industry. Prices also reflect risk. There are a multitude of resources for these

Nevada workers (8 out of 17 brothels) to learn how to negotiate and build a brand compared to

those not employed legally. In Nevada prices cannot be posted or negotiated online, only in person

at licensed brothels. (Schrager) This is an effective start to helping inflate market prices, rather

than illegal prices jeopardizing an income inequality between sex workers. Also legislation should

include a market minimum price, such as $400 minimum which is the standard, for any service.

Having unlegislated or unregulated prices in the sex industry can be disastrous as seen in Germany

or Amsterdam. Sex sells for as little as 10 euros or a McDonalds meal for survival or migrant sex

workers. (Nisha) Having protections to promote inflation instead of deflation is crucial to having

sex work be a sustainable and financially supportive job.

Licensing for legal brothels must include opportunities for small businesses within. In

legal brothels German sex workers are creating a self-network of entrepreneurship. Many

brothels have specialized floors not used for sexual services, but for small businesses former or

current sex workers run. This includes on-site hairdressers, fake tan technicians, a nail salon,
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self-service restaurant, and small boutiques run by the workers. This includes a classroom for

free German lessons and specialization on sex education. This concept of expanding

entrepreneurship opportunities and knowledge to aspects outside of sex work is not only extra

income but a way to have a profession change for many. Working in shops or restaurants such as

these do not have employer bias towards hiring sex workers and give experience that is

applicable on resumes. Outsourcing small business and jobs to sex workers is essential to

creating an industry that a woman can leave with additional business skills if she chooses to do

so.

Lastly is much needed legislation to help sex workers not be denied health insurance or

have extremely high premiums because of their profession. In legalized countries such as

Germany, health insurance premiums are usually over 500 euro a month (Nisha) because of the

associated health risks of being a sex worker. These premiums are not realistic for legal sex

workers who are survivalists or have large financial burdens. If a sex worker is doing her legal

obligation of weekly and monthly STD screenings in combination with always using condoms,

her job should not put her at discrimination for higher premiums. America does not have

universal healthcare which can lead to price discriminations because of professions or pre-

existing conditions. This defines the need to further reduce stigma of sex workers being

“unclean” because of their sexual status, which raised premiums can amplify.

Sex work and the cocuring sex industry is gaining traction to further its place in our

society. All greater benefits towards women, health, and reducing violence statistically show that

legalization is an effective choice. This choice cannot stand on its own, it needs proper

government management at full capacity along with helpful legislation and social program

support. Sex workers ask everyday with conviction, for what they deserve. It is no longer the
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choice, or therefore right, of the United States government to deny them consent over their own

bodies.

Works Cited

Diu, Nisha. “Welcome to Paradise.” The Telegraph, Telegraph Media Group, 2013,

s.telegraph.co.uk/graphics/projects/welcome-to-paradise/.

Frey, Erin. “The New Frontier – Therapy in the Workplace – Kip Blog – Medium.”

Medium.com, Medium, 12 July 2017, medium.com/kip-blog/the-new-frontier-therapy-in-

the-workplace-aadb91735628.
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Grant, Melissa Gira. “7 Sex Workers on What It Means to Lose Backpage.com.” The Cut, New

York Media LLC, 10 Apr. 2018, www.thecut.com/2018/04/7-sex-workers-on-what-it-

means-to-lose-backpage.html#comments.

Ley, David. “Sex Work and Therapy.” Psychology Today, Sussex Publishers, Dec. 2017,

www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/women-who-stray/201712/sex-work-and-therapy.

McGrew, Kate. “The Problem with Criminalizing Sex Workers' Clients.” Open Society

Foundations, Open Society, 9 Nov. 2016,

www.opensocietyfoundations.org/voices/problem-criminalizing-sex-workers-clients.

Metla, Valeriya. “Prostitution: Should It Be Legalized or Criminalized?” Law Street, Law Street

Media, 20 July 2016, lawstreetmedia.com/issues/law-and-politics/prostitution-legalized-

criminalized/.

Rosen, David. “It's Time to Decriminalize Sex Work.” Progressive.org, The Progressive , 14 Aug.

2018, progressive.org/op-eds/its-time-to-decriminalize-sex-work-180814/.

Schrager, Allison. “Inside Nevada's Moonlite Bunny Ranch: Come for the Sex. Stay for the

Negotiation Skills.” Quartz, Quartz, 23 Aug. 2018, qz.com/774206/how-to-negotiate-for-

what-your-worth-according-to-the-women-of-the-famous-moonlite-bunny-ranch-brothel-

in-nevada/.

Wallace, Bob. “The Ban on Purchasing Sex in Sweden: The So-Called 'Swedish Model'.”

Trafficking Policy Research Project, 2011, www.traffickingpolicyresearchproject.org.