Barriers to Governmental Income Supports for Sex Workers during COVID-19: Results of a Community-Based Cohort in Metro Vancouver

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought into stark focus the economic inequities faced by precarious, criminalized and racialized workers. Sex workers have been historically excluded from structural supports due to criminalization and occupational stigma. Given emerging concerns regarding sex workers’ inequitable access to COVID-19 income supports in Canada and elsewhere, our objective was to identify prevalence and correlates of accessing emergency income supports among women sex workers in Vancouver, Canada. Data were drawn from a longstanding community-based open cohort (AESHA) of cis and trans women sex workers in Metro Vancouver from April 2020–April 2021 (n = 208). We used logistic regression to model correlates of access to COVID-19 income supports. Among 208 participants, 52.9% were Indigenous, 6.3% Women of Colour (Asian, Southeast Asian, or Black), and 40.9% white. Overall, 48.6% reported accessing income supports during the pandemic. In adjusted multivariable analysis, non-injection drug use was associated with higher odds of accessing COVID-19 income supports (aOR: 2.58, 95% CI: 1.31–5.07), whereas Indigenous women faced reduced odds (aOR 0.55, 95% CI 0.30–1.01). In comparison with other service workers, access to income supports among sex workers was low overall, particularly for Indigenous sex workers, demonstrating the compounding impacts of colonization and disproportionate criminalization of Indigenous sex workers. Results highlight the need for structural supports that are low-barrier and culturally-safe to support sex workers’ health, safety and dignity.

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“…The authors draw on data gathered from an ongoing community-based study to identify the prevalence and correlates of accessing emergency income support during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, including the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB), a one-time benefit available to Canadian residents based on their previous earnings and tax returns. Pearson et al (2022) show that sex workers in Vancouver not only lost significant income from the sale of sexual services due to shutdowns and mobility restrictions, but were far less likely than other service workers to access government income support during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. The outcome of these macro-level forces was greater poverty for sex workers in Vancouver's inner city, exacerbated housing precarity, and increased food insecurity.…”

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“…The impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic have left gaps in knowledge that are not only essential to address now but also in preparation for future pandemic planning in the health system. Structural health inequities, including, access to healthcare services and community-based services (10,(12)(13)(14)(15), gender-based violence (16,17), and mental health disparities (14,18,19) have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic (20), yet little is known about marginalized Indigenous cisgender and transgender women and Two-Spirit Peoples access to routine healthcare services during the pandemic.…”

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