Sex workers, like the majority of society, have suffered from the effects of austerity – and COVID-19 has left them even more exposed. Natasha Mulvihill (University of Bristol) argues that legal and welfare reform are needed to enable choice and reduce harm

Mulvihill, Natasha

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The	impact	of	COVID-19	on	sex	workersSex	workers,	like	the	majority	of	society,	have	suffered	from	the	effects	of	austerity	–	and	COVID-19	has	left	themeven	more	exposed.	Natasha	Mulvihill	(University	of	Bristol)	argues	that	legal	and	welfare	reform	are	needed	toenable	choice	and	reduce	harm.In	2019,	I	co-authored	a	Home	Office-commissioned	report	with	colleagues	at	the	University	of	Bristol	on	the	natureand	prevalence	of	prostitution	and	sex	work	in	England	and	Wales.	As	part	of	that	research,	we	heard	from	over500	individuals	involved	in	selling	sex,	and	followed	up	with	more	than	40	within	that	group	to	learn	more	abouttheir	experiences.	Since	the	COVID-19	pandemic	and	lockdown,	I	have	been	thinking	about	our	participants	in	thatresearch	and	how	they	are	managing.A	2009	demo	in	support	of	sex	workers’	rights	in	London.	Photo:	Hannah	Nicklin	via	a	CC-BY-NC-SA	2.0	licenceThe	challenges	facing	those	who	sell	sex	both	in	the	UK	and	around	the	world	during	the	pandemic	have	beenarticulated	in	academic	journals,	by	organisations	working	with	and	representing	sex	workers	(including	NUM,	ECP,Changing	Lives,	Beyond	the	Streets,	SWARM	and	One25)	and	on	news	and	social	media.	Of	course,	many	ofthose	selling	sex	are	unaffiliated	to	any	group	or	support	organisation:	they	work	alone	in	privacy	or	remain	outsidethe	public	and	media	gaze,	through	choice	or	otherwise.There	is	stark	commonality,	but	also	diversity	across	the	sex	industry.	Most	are	working	in-person,	providing	sexualservices,	including	full	sex	either	at	home,	outdoors	or	in	another	venue	such	as	a	brothel,	parlour	or	hotel;	othersare	working	through	phonelines	or	online,	webcamming	or	making	clips	to	order,	for	example.	Given	the	lockdown,there	has	been	some	movement	to	online,	but	many	will	have	continued	to	work	in-person.	Most	sellers	are	women,including	trans	women.	There	are	also	a	significant	number	of	male	sex	workers,	as	well	as	those	who	identify	withother	genders	or	none.LSE Covid 19 Blog: The impact of COVID-19 on sex workers Page 1 of 3		Date originally posted: 2020-06-08Permalink: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/covid19/2020/06/08/the-impact-of-covid-19-on-sex-workers/Blog homepage: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/covid19/Some	are	successful	entrepreneurs,	running	their	own	websites,	operating	from	dedicated	premises,	registered	asself-employed	and	paying	tax.	A	proportion	of	these	may	therefore	have	met	the	criteria	to	apply	for	the	UK	Self-Employment	Income	Support	Scheme	set	up	in	response	to	the	lockdown.	However,	the	Home	Office	researchsuggested	that	the	majority	of	those	selling	sex	are	either	doing	so	temporarily,	intermittently	or	long	term	to	makeends	meet,	including	as	a	supplement	to	other	paid	work.	Many	are	caring	(often	solo)	for	others,	including	children,partners	or	parents;	some	are	managing	long-term	physical	illness	or	mental	health	issues;	many	are	migrants,some	with	insecure	status;	some	are	students;	some	involved	are	victims	of	partner	abuse,	or	are	misusing	drugs	oralcohol.	Some	may	register	their	earnings	formally;	most	will	not.	I	would	term	this	majority	as	‘sex	workers’	or‘individuals	engaged	in	survival	sex’	(see	Mulvihill,	2019),	and	it	these	groups	that	are	the	focus	of	this	commentary.There	are	also	a	significant	number	of	mainly	women	and	girls	who	are	coerced	into,	and	abused	by	othersthrough,	‘prostitution’	–	which,	while	recognising	the	overlap	and	movement	between	categories,	I	would	rather	term‘sexual	exploitation’.The	COVID-19	crisis	has	brought	into	sharp	focus	two	issues	for	those	engaged	in	sex	work	and	survival	sex	in	theUK:	the	inadequacy	of	the	legal	environment,	and	the	inadequacy	of	the	welfare	safety	net	and	public	provision.In	England	and	Wales,	it	is	legal	to	sell	and	to	buy	sex.	However,	myriad	activities	around	the	sale	of	sex	are	illegal,such	as	pimping,	kerb-crawling,	soliciting	on	the	street	or	working	with	one	or	more	other	people	from	a	premises,as	this	constitutes	a	‘brothel’.	These	laws	have	been	layered	piecemeal	over	decades	and	are	unevenly	enforced,more	so	given	tightening	police	resources.	They	are	ostensibly	aimed	at	preventing	exploitation,	but	stem	as	muchfrom	a	concern	to	keep	such	activity	out	of	public	view.Whether	you	understand	selling	sex	as	a	job	like	any	other	or	as	an	outcome	of	patriarchy	and	other	inequalities	–or	both	–	most	can	agree	that	sex	workers	should	not	be	criminalised.	Governments	should	seek	to	allow	sellers	towork	together	in	a	small-scale	and	self-managed	way.	Such	brothels	already	exist	up	and	down	the	country,	but	sexworkers	risk	inconsistent	policing,	depending	on	where	they	are	located.	The	illegal	status	of	brothels	placesbarriers	to	reporting	violence	or	other	crimes	against	sellers.	Those	selling	sex	on	the	street	should	not	becriminalised.	Equally,	the	concerns	of	communities	in	relation	to	both	indoor	and	outdoor	sex	work	need	to	berecognised	and	negotiated.	Rather	than	seeking	to	manage	outdoor	sellers,	far	more	resource	should	be	investedin	tackling	the	drivers	for	street	sex,	which	are	well	documented	(see	for	example,	Matthews	et	al.,	2014;	Sanders,2007).The	legal	status	of	sex	workers	links	to	the	second	issue	of	access	to	welfare	and	collective	provision.	The	UK,	likeother	liberalising	economies,	has	seen	a	steady	erosion	of	the	welfare	safety	net.	The	threshold	for	eligibility	is	everhigher	and	the	benefit	received	ever	lower.	State	dependence	is	stigmatised	and	personal	responsibility	prized(though	inheritances	and	other	financial	support	from	one’s	family	are	encouraged).	Sex	workers,	like	the	majorityof	society,	are	vulnerable.	Not	vulnerable	in	the	sense	of	helpless	or	lacking	resourcefulness,	ability	or	graft,	butrather	vulnerable	through	exposure	to	changing	individual	circumstances	and	unforgiving	welfare	and	legalcontexts.	Many	of	us	can	face	this	sudden	exposure	when	we	find	ourselves	caring	for	others,	made	unemployed,discriminated	against,	migrate	or	become	ill.	Surveys	in	the	US	and	UK	suggest	that	at	least	a	third	of	millennials,for	example,	have	no	savings	put	by;	and	another	third	would	only	have	three	months	pay	if	their	income	stopped.So	a	safety	net,	whether	that	is	short	or	longer	term,	is	crucial	both	to	uphold	human	dignity	but	also	to	avoid	thefuture	multiplier	costs	to	the	state	of	economic	and	social	exclusion.Yet	austerity	and	the	difficulties	in	accessing	Universal	Credit	have	pushed	many	into	exchanging	sex	for	money.How	ironic	that	now	the	COVID-19	crisis	is	affecting	mainstream	workers,	the	government	has	adopted	a	‘pay	now,verify	later’	approach	to	Universal	Credit	–	and	that	borrowing,	minimised	for	a	decade	in	favour	of	austerity,	hasreached	unprecedented	levels	in	order	to	stave	off	a	depression.	Had	we	prioritised	spending	after	the	2008financial	crisis	to	invest	in	a	fairer	safety	net	and	more	robust	public	provision,	we	might	have	been	better	equippedto	meet	the	challenge	of	the	pandemic.Around	the	world,	those	who	sell	sex	(including	those	who	add	significantly	to	national	income	through	the	tourismand	leisure	industries)	have	found	that	they	either	have	no	access	to	government	income	support	(France,Thailand,	Japan	or	Kenya)	or	minimal	access	(Brazil	or	Mexico).	In	New	Zealand,	by	contrast,	where	sex	work	isdecriminalised,	applying	for	help	has	been	more	straightforward.LSE Covid 19 Blog: The impact of COVID-19 on sex workers Page 2 of 3		Date originally posted: 2020-06-08Permalink: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/covid19/2020/06/08/the-impact-of-covid-19-on-sex-workers/Blog homepage: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/covid19/The	pandemic	has	temporarily	allowed	us	to	see	alternatives	to	the	current	order.	It	is	possible	to	hold	quitedivergent	views	on	prostitution	and	sex	work,	yet	at	the	same	time	agree	that	punitive	criminal	justice	or	welfaremeasures	appear	only	to	harm	those	who	sell	sex	–	indeed,	harm	all	those	exposed	by	social	inequity	or	a	changein	circumstances.	By	lifting	those	selling	sex	out	of	social,	economic	and	legal	grey	zones	and	giving	them	theresources	to	stand	in	equality	with	others,	they	can	determine	their	own	futures.This	post	represents	the	views	of	the	author	and	not	those	of	the	COVID-19	blog,	nor	LSE.LSE Covid 19 Blog: The impact of COVID-19 on sex workers Page 3 of 3		Date originally posted: 2020-06-08Permalink: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/covid19/2020/06/08/the-impact-of-covid-19-on-sex-workers/Blog homepage: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/covid19/

The impact of COVID-19 on sex workers

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The impact of COVID-19 on sex workers

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