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Risks 4.4 The impacts of COVID-19

The COVID-19, global pandemic, has greatly impacted female entrepreneurs' safety who are working outside the formal economy in sex work. The two main impacts to safety are the inability to physically distance and the exclusion of government economic support because of their lack of perceived income on paper.

Digital Entrepership: Sexual Labor

Research indicates that forms of female digital entrepreneurship, such as sexual labour, are often delegitimized due to the socio-cultural assumptions that “defines female sexual labour as illegitimate work.” Historically, ‘women’s work’ has been devalued and hypersexualized. With reproductive labour devalued in relation to the economy, it causes jobs categorized as ‘women’s work’ to be seen as an illegitimate way of earning an income. This means limited benefits, rights, and protection to those who perform them. This labour sector continues to increase annually; however, the financial instability remains unchanged.

Men who have sex with men often find gay hookup apps and websites as an introduction to sex work. There are opposing perspectives on whether doing sex work through these apps minimizes risk or increases it. Many of these apps are used covertly in violation of the terms of the service; they use codes to circumvent censors, at the risk of being reported or banned. Sex workers who come to sex work through these apps may be poorly equipped to manage risks such as STI’s and client vetting, and may not view themselves as sex workers due to the more casual nature of the hookup apps. This perspective can cause them to underestimate the risks of sex work and puts them at greater risk for harm.

Other studies have shown that hookup apps can be beneficial in providing safety, as they reduce the risk of solicitation on the street and allow for sex workers to have more control over who has access to knowledge of their services. Technology gives more opportunities for sharing information and setting expectations before meeting. Online sex work also creates a more comfortable attitude around sex work, especially among queer men.

By country: Canada

The passing of Bill C-36 in 2014, the Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act, criminalized the purchasing of sexual services. It stigmatized sex work by condemning sex work clientele and posits sex workers as victims to sexual exploitation. The criminalization of purchasing sexual services created riskier working conditions for sex workers due to services going underground to avoid clients being policed. For instance, sex workers now rush negotiations with clients to avoid being caught by the police, resulting in an increased risk of violence, abuse, and condom refusal. This bill has been referred to as ‘end-demand legislation’ and has been critiqued by sex workers and advocates in that it furthers harm experienced by sex workers rather than eliminating it. Their response to this legislation has been to call for the decriminalization of sex work and the purchasing of sex work services, to ensure access to full labour and human rights for sex workers.

Subleading of canada - British Columbia

In February of 2021, it was announced that the Law Foundation of BC and an anonymous donor would be contributing $1-million to the creation of a province-wide “bad date” database.. This database would support harm-reduction for sex workers in BC, giving an accessible way to avoid risky and potentially violent clients and situations. At this time, project details are still being negotiated; however, the project will be led by sex work advocacy groups and consultations with the sex work community. The creation of a provincial reporting system is vital, due to sex workers’ reluctance to report crimes to the police, and the need to make sex work conditions as safe as possible.