Sex workers now have formal employment contracts and other labor rights that other professions already have, such as health insurance. And employers will have to ask the State to be pimps.
From this Sunday, December 1st, sex workers in Belgium can sign formal employment contracts and obtain labor rights equivalent to those of other professions, in a legal advance that some describe as a “revolution“.
The new law also establishes fundamental rights for sex workers, including the right to refuse customers, choose your practices e interrupt an act at any timewithout fear of suffering any sanctions from the employer.
The measure, by the Belgian legislature last May, continues the country’s decision, in 2022, to decriminalize sex work.
Under the new regulations, sex workers will have access to health insurance, paid leave, maternity benefits, unemployment benefit e reform.
The legislation also defines rules on working hours, remuneration e measures of securityaddressing a long-standing gap in legal protections for workers in this sector.
“It’s an incredible step forward,” said Isabelle Jaramillo, coordinator of Espace P, a group defending the rights of the sector, which participated in the drafting of the legislation: “it means that the profession can finally be recognized as legitimate by the Belgian State.”
“I had to work when I was nine months pregnant,” says Sophie, a prostitute in Belgium, to : “I was having sex with clients a week before giving birth.”
“I couldn’t afford to stop because I needed the money”, confesses one of 52 million sex workers worldwide.
“From the employer’s point of view, this will also be a revolution: they will have to request authorization from the State to hire sex workers“, explained Jaramillo.
Authorization for hiring
“Under previous legislation, hiring someone for sex work automatically made them a pimp, even if the arrangement was consensual,” Jaramillo said. “Now, they will have to request authorization from the State to hire workers.”
In addition to the need to obtain authorization, employers will have to adhere to strict security protocols and meet requirements such as being free of a criminal record, including the absence of previous convictions for sexual assault or human trafficking. They must provide clean bedding, condoms and hygiene products, and install emergency buttons in workplaces.
Independent sex work continues to be permitted, but unregulated third-party contracting or violations of the legal framework will be subject to prosecution.
“There is still a lot to do”
Critics argue that the law fails to fully address the stigma and risks associated with the trade, especially for undocumented sex workers.
“There is still a lot of work to do,” Jaramillo acknowledges, emphasizing the need for better police and judicial training to protect marginalized workers.
Although countries like Germany and the Netherlands have legalized sex work, none have implemented as comprehensive labor protections as Belgium.
