Sex workers are known to work in an extremely risky industry that can get quite unsafe at times. Essentially, the job of sex workers can be described as the exchange of sexual services for monetary gain.
Although there is no current data to present the number of sex workers in Australia, the UN estimated in 2014 that Australia must have had around 20,500 sex workers at that time. Despite sex workers constituting a considerable portion of the Australian population, there is very little conversation surrounding the safety of those in this profession.
People will easily have discussions regarding the best brothels in their area but refuse to talk about how the employees of these brothels can safely do what they do, without having to worry about unwanted advances or other such issues.
Gone are the days when staying in oblivion was alright. In today’s time, we must raise awareness regarding this industry and do our part in making sure even the best brothels, or their customers, are not exploiting their employees.
In this article, you will explore how you, as the general public, can ensure that sex workers are protected in all shapes and forms. For Australia specifically, every state and territory has separate laws and regulations surrounding sex work.
Where Does The Australian Government Stand On Sex Work?
Since every state and region has different laws, this question cannot be answered in a general manner. Some of the best brothels in Australia continue to operate across the country, to whatever extent their state permits them to do so.
In New South Wales, the Northern Territory and Victoria, sex work is decriminalized for the most part. However, in Queensland, Tasmania and the ACT, only some sex work is decriminalized. This means that in these areas, sex work can be legally performed, but only to some extent. In South Australia and Western Australia, sex work remains criminalized for the most part.
As time progresses and the general population become more open-minded, people have begun to work towards the decriminalization of sex work entirely. For this, activists have campaigned and rallied along with employees from the best brothels across the country for better work conditions for sex workers along with a more regulated nature of the industry.
Such acts can not only be quite empowering for sex workers but also achieve another goal of removing the prejudice surrounding this industry for good. It is no surprise that slowly but surely society has begun to accept this industry and understand that they also deserve the right to exercise justice when some unfortunate incidents happen in their life.
The sad side of the truth is that these rights have only been introduced in some places and are mostly poorly executed.
Prostitution Laws In Australia
Out of all the jurisdictions in Australia, New South Wales has the most decriminalized system concerning sex work. The work towards this was started back in 1979 and finally, in 1995, sex work was decriminalized to the most extent.
Here, a person above the age of 18, with his or her consent, can legally exchange sexual favors in return for any monetary gain or personal favors, with someone over the age of consent. Moreover, street-based sex work is also legal with some exceptions. These are that it must not be performed in schools, churches, hospitals or dwellings.
Certain specificities are also banned. One of these is the advertisement of any space where sex work is solicited or an advertisement regarding a job opening about sex work. Moreover, all places offering sexual services, such as the best brothels in Australia, must comply with all the regulations necessary to continue operating legally.
Furthermore, it is a crime to make somebody engage in sex work without their explicit consent. This implies that the coerced consent of anyone or the consent of anybody under the influence or in an unclear state of mind is not deemed fit. Needless to say, any child, that is an individual under the age of 18, can not legally engage in any activities related to sex work.
These laws are specific to New South Wales. Laws for other states and territories differ accordingly.
Prejudices And Abuses In The Sex Work Industry
For workers who are forced to enter the sex work industry, there exist laws for their protection. However, those who are voluntarily working in this industry face tons of prejudice and stigma from society and other institutions.
This prevents these workers from accessing services that other people can safely obtain. For instance, a sex worker visiting the bank to open a business bank account will be grilled unfairly and in a misunderstood manner, an attitude that other professionals would not have to face.
Although it is not true that the work of sex workers is a crime, sex workers do face abuse and are subject to certain misconduct in their industry, even in some of the best brothels. These include, but are not limited to, violence and unhygienic work conditions.
Conclusion
Sex workers working in the best brothels sometimes see cleaner work conditions but are still exploited to no extent. Therefore, we must start fighting for the rights of sex workers and spreading awareness about this industry today.
