Belgium initiates first-ever employment contracts for sex workers

Ua world first. After the legalization of sex work in 2022, priced sexual services and services will be from December 1 in Belgium, governed by social law common to all employment contracts in the country.

This will in particular lead to “the right of access to social security” and health coverage, with the possibility, for example, of having a medical certificate in the event of illness, explains Isabelle Jaramillo, coordinator of the non-profit association Espace P in the digital columns of RTL Info. Pregnant women will be able to “be excluded” and therefore better protected.

ALSO READ The faces of prostitution in France

Until now across Quiévrain, as in many other countries around the world, sex work was subject to a legal vacuum. As pimping remains prohibited, the work itself, although admitted as legal and “professional”, was not recognized and therefore did not benefit from any social benefits linked to unemployment, health or retirement. In this sector often controlled by certain criminal organizations, violence and abuse can be commonplace, despite a storefront that has existed for several decades.

Way to go

“Previously, everyone who hired someone for sex work was a pimp according to the law,” explains Daan Bauwens, director of the Union of Sex Workers (UTSOPI). But the law was not applied. This means that it […] Read more