A sex worker is a person who provides sex work, either on a regular or occasional basis. The term is used in reference to those who work in all areas of the sex industry.Oxford English Dictionary, "sex worker" According to one view, sex work is voluntary "and is seen as the commercial exchange of sex for money or goods". In light of this principle, it will therefore differ from sexual exploitation, or the forcing of a person to commit sexual acts. Other positions may maintain, however, that any commercial exchange of sex for money or goods will necessarily constitute sexual exploitation.
Terminology
The term "sex worker" was coined in 1978 by sex worker activist Carol Leigh. Its use became popularized after publication of the anthology, Sex Work: Writings By Women In The Sex Industry in 1987, edited by Frédérique Delacoste and Priscilla Alexander."The Etymology of the terms 'Sex Work' and 'Sex Worker'", BAYSWAN.org. Accessed 2009-09-11. The term "sex worker" has since spread into much wider use, including in academic publications, by NGOs and labor unions, and by governmental and intergovernmental agencies, such as the World Health Organization. The term is listed in the Oxford English Dictionary and Merriam-Webster's Dictionary.
The term "sex worker" is used by some to avoid invoking the stigma associated with the word "prostitute". Using the term "sex worker" rather than "prostitute" also allows more members of the sex industry to be represented and helps ensure that individuals who are actually prostitutes are not singled out and associated with the negative connotations of "prostitute". In addition, choosing to use the term "sex worker" rather than "prostitute" shows ownership over the individuals' career choices. Some argue that those who prefer the term "sex worker" wish to separate their occupation from their person. Describing someone as a sex worker recognizes that the individual may have many different facets, and are not necessarily defined by their job.
The term is strongly opposed, however, by anti-prostitution feminists, who view prostitution as victimization and see the term "sex work" as legitimizing exploitation as a type of labor. Social conservatives also disagree with the term, since they see the practice of prostitution as a violation of traditional sexual morality and consequently do not wish it to be accorded the status of respectable labor either.
In practice
Sex work can take the form of prostitution, stripping or lap dancing, performance in pornography, phone sex or webcam modelling, or any other exchange of sexual services for financial or material gain. Sex workers who include sexual intercourse as part of their services are considered 'full-service' sex workers. The variety in the tasks encompassed by sex work leads to a large range in both severity and nature of risks that sex workers face in their occupations. Sex workers can act independently as individuals, work for a company or corporation, or work as part of a brothel. All of the above can be undertaken either by free choice or by coercion, or, as some argue, along a continuum between conflict and agency. Sex workers may also be hired to be companions on a trip or to perform sexual services within the context of a trip; either of these can be voluntary or forced labor.
Motivations Sex workers may be any gender and exchange sexual services or favors for money or other gifts. The motives of sex workers vary widely and can include debt, coercion, survival, or simply as a way to earn a living. Sexual empowerment is another possible reason why people engage in sex work. One Canadian study found that a quarter of the sex workers interviewed started sex work because they found it "appealing". The flexibility to choose hours of work and the ability to select one's own client base may also contribute to the appeal of sex work when compared to other service industry jobs. Sex work may also be a way to fund addiction. This line of work can be fueled by an individual's addiction to illegal substances before entering the industry or being introduced to these substances after entering the industry.
For camming services, motivations can vary when engaging in sex with real-life versus virtual partners. A 2023 study found that sex workers providing camming services were more likely to engage in sex with virtual partners for resources and specific types of sexual experiences such as sexual fetishism and sadomasochism. In contrast, they engaged in sex more often with real-life partners for physical pleasure, motivated by the physical desirability of their partner, and to express love and commitment. However, for many other motivations, such as stress reduction, self-esteem boost, emotional expression, or utilitarian reasons, there were no significant differences in frequency of engagement with real-life versus virtual partners.
These motives also align with varying climates surrounding sex work in different communities and cultures. In some cases, sex work is linked to tourism, as part of sex tourism.
Demographics Transgender people are more likely than the general population to do sex work, particularly trans women and trans people of color. In a study of female Indian sex workers, illiteracy and lower social status were more prevalent than among the general female population.
One study of sex work in Tijuana, Mexico, found that the majority of sex workers there are young, female, and heterosexual. Many of these studies attempt to use smaller samples of sex workers and pimps in order to extrapolate about larger populations of sex workers. One report on the underground sex trade in the United States used known data on the illegal drug and weapon trades and interviews with sex workers and pimps in order to draw conclusions about the number of sex workers in eight American cities. However, studies like this one can come under scrutiny for a perceived emphasis on the activities and perspectives of pimps and other sex work managers rather than those of sex work providers themselves. Another criticism is that sex trafficking may not be adequately assessed in relation to sex work in these studies.
Many studies struggle to gain demographic information about the prevalence of sex work, as many countries or cities have laws prohibiting prostitution or other sex work. In addition, sex trafficking, or forced sex work, is also difficult to quantify due to its underground and covert nature. In addition, finding a representative sample of sex workers in a given city can be nearly impossible because the size of the population itself is unknown. Maintaining privacy and confidentiality in research is also difficult because many sex workers may face prosecution and other consequences if their identities are revealed.
Discrimination Sex workers may be stereotyped as deviant, hypersexual, sexually risky, and substance abusive. Sex workers may cope with this stigmatization in ways such as hiding their occupation from non-sex workers, social withdrawal, and creating a false self to perform at work. Sex-work-related stigma may help perpetuate rape culture and can lead to slut-shaming.
Among sex workers women were found overrepresented compared to gender parity.
Sex work is also often conflated with sex trafficking, despite the fact that most sex workers choose to consensually engage in the sex trade. For example, the Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act in the United States was passed to ostensibly protect victims of sex trafficking but included language making it illegal to advertise consensual sex online. Such laws have a significantly negative impact on sex workers.
Globally, sex workers encounter barriers in accessing health care, legislation, legal resources, and labor rights. In a study of U.S. sex workers, 43% of interview participants reported exposure to intimate partner violence, physical violence, armed physical violence, and sexual violence in the forms of sexual coercion and rape. In this same study, a sex worker reported, "in this lifestyle, nothing's safe". Sex workers may experience police abuse as well, as the police may use their authority to intimidate sex workers. Police officers in some countries have been reported to exploit street-based sex workers' fear of incarceration to force them to have sex with the police without payment, sometimes still arresting them after having coerced sex. Police may also compromise sex workers' safety, often holding sex workers responsible for crimes perpetrated against them because of the stigma attached to their occupation. There is growth in advocacy organizations to reduce and erase prejudice and stigma against sex work, and to provide more support and resources for sex workers.
Financial deplatforming Many sex workers experience systemic deplatforming, restriction, or termination of banking and payment processing services to individuals and their businesses. This deplatforming can occur across both the traditional and digital financial institutions and intermediaries.
The modern history of financial deplatforming of sex workers traces back to the early 2010s. In 2013, the United States Department of Justice launched Operation Choke Point, an initiative that pressured banks to cut ties with industries deemed "high risk" for fraud or money laundering. Adult entertainment was also categorized alongside firearm sales and payday loans. This prompted the banks to adopt the policies to reject adult industry clientele to avoid regulatory sanctions. This environment became more complex in 2018 by the passage of the Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act and Allow States and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act (FOSTA-SESTA). By amending Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, FOSTA-SESTA made online platforms legally liable if third parties used their services for sex trafficking. To avoid legal trouble, banks and payment companies started closing the accounts of sex workers and adult websites.
Legal dimensions of sex work
Depending on local law, sex workers' activities may be regulated, controlled, tolerated, or prohibited. In most countries, even those where sex work is legal, sex workers may be stigmatized and marginalized, which may prevent them from seeking legal redress for discrimination (e.g., racial discrimination by a strip club owner), non-payment by a client, assault or rape. Sex worker advocates have identified this as whorephobia.
The legality of different types of sex work varies within and between regions of the world. For example, while pornography is legal in the United States, prostitution is illegal in most parts of the US. However, in other regions of the world, both pornography and prostitution are illegal; in others, both are legal. One example of a country in which pornography, prostitution, and all professions encompassed under the umbrella of sex work are all legal is New Zealand. Under the Prostitution Reform Act of New Zealand, laws and regulations have been put into place in order to ensure the safety and protection of its sex workers. For example, since the implementation of the Prostitution Reform Act, "any person seeking to open a larger brothel, where more than four sex workers will be working requires a Brothel Operators Certificate, which certifies them as a suitable person to exercise control over sex workers in the workplace. [In addition,] sex workers operating in managed premises have access to labour rights and human rights protection and can pursue claims before the courts, like any other worker or employee." In regions where sex work is illegal, advocates for sex workers' rights argue that the covert nature of illegal prostitution is a barrier to access to legal resources. However, some who oppose the legalization of prostitution argue that sex work is inherently exploitative and can never be legalized or practiced in a way that respects the rights of those who perform it.