How client criminalisation under end-demand sex work laws shapes the occupational health and safety of sex workers in Metro Vancouver, Canada: a qualitative study

Abstract

ObjectivesIn 2014, Canada implemented end-demand sex work legislation that criminalises clients and third parties (eg, managers, security personnel, etc) involved in sex work. The focus of this analysis is to explore how the criminalisation of clients shapes the occupational health and safety of sex workers.DesignAs part of a longstanding community-based study (An Evaluation of Sex Workers’ Health Access), this analysis draws on 47 in-depth qualitative interviews with indoor sex workers and third parties. Informed by an intersectional lens and guided by a structural determinants of health framework, this work seeks to characterise the impact of client criminalisation in shaping the occupational health and safety of indoor sex workers.SettingIndoor sex work venues (eg, massage parlour, in-call, brothel, etc) operating in Metro Vancouver, Canada.Participants47 predominately racialised sex workers and third parties working in indoor environments between 2017 and 2018.ResultsWhile participants highlighted that the majority of their client interactions were positive, their narratives emphasised how end-demand criminalisation impeded their occupational safety. The criminalisation of clients was linked to reduced ability to negotiate the terms of sexual transactions, including type of service, price and sexual health. Client preference for cash payments to maintain anonymity led to increased risk of robbery and assault due to knowledge of high cash flow in sex work venues and a reluctance to seek police protection. Workers also noted that client fear of being prosecuted or ‘outed’ by police enhanced feelings of shame, which was linked to increased aggression by clients.ConclusionPolicies and laws that criminalise clients are incompatible with efforts to uphold the occupational health and safety and human rights of sex workers. The decriminalisation of sex work is urgently needed in order to support the well-being and human rights of all those involved in the Canadian sex industry.

Sex work‐related homicides: Insights from the National Violent Death Reporting System, 2012–2020

“…Money conflicts were a common circumstance among both female and male victims. This could be due to clients' preference for cash payments to maintain anonymity which can lead to an increased risk of robbery and assault due to knowledge of high cash flow in sex work business and a reluctance to report theft to the authorities [25]. Additionally, clients may target on sex workers' inability to report lack of payment of services to authorities due to the illicit nature of the transaction.…”

“Someone is Wrong About Sex on the Internet”: Online Discourse and the Role of Public Scholarship on Jewish Sexual Ethics

“…See, for just a few examples:McDermid et al 2022; Cameron et al 2020, 427-69;and Platt et al 2018. See also reports compiled by Human Rights Watch (2012), the American Civil Liberties Union (n.d.), and Amnesty International (2016) on the matter.…”