In a world first, Belgium has extended workers’ rights to sex workers. Now sex workers will be entitled to sick days, maternity pay and pension under the first law of its kind in the world.

The new legislation has been welcomed by Belgian sex workers who say they will be more “protected” now. This comes after Belgian lawmakers decriminalized sex work in 2022.

Here’s why the new law is a big deal.

Belgian sex workers get working rights

On Sunday (December 1), Belgium became the first country to allow
sex worker to sign formal employment contracts, grant them health insurance, pensions, maternity leave and sick days.

Sex workers will also enjoy the right to refuse clients or a specific sexual act, and to stop an act at any time. They cannot be fired for these refusals.

Sex workers will also have access to paid leave, maternity pay and unemployment benefits.

While the law giving sex workers the same employment protections as other workers was passed in May, it went into effect on Sunday.

According to the new law, employers must be of “good character” with a business residence in
Belgiumnoted The Guardian.

Pimps, who control sex work, can now operate legally, provided they follow strict rules.

According to Associated Press (AP), employers must obtain permits and follow strict safety protocols. They must ensure that their premises are clean and equipped with a panic button.

Employers must also meet background requirements, such as no prior convictions for sexual assault, human trafficking or fraud, reported NPR.

This law only covers sex workers who sign an employment contract, but not those who are self-employed. People who perform pornography or striptease are also not covered by these protections.

Reactions to Belgium’s team

Sex workers have hailed the legislation, saying that before the law they had to work during pregnancy or beyond retirement age.

The Belgian Union of Sex Workers (UTSOPI) said the law was “a big step forward, which stops the legal discrimination against sex workers”.

“I’m a very proud Belgian sex worker right now,” Mel Meliciousss, who is part of the Belgian union, wrote on her Instagram. “People who are already working in the industry will be much more protected, and also people who will be working in the industry will also know what their rights are.”

A sex worker told BBC that she believes this law will improve their lives. “If there is no law and your job is illegal, there are no protocols to help you. This law gives people the tools to make us safer.”

“This is radical, and it’s the best step we’ve seen anywhere in the world so far,” said Erin Kilbride, researcher at Human Rights Watch. BBC. “We need all countries to move in that direction.”

But critics have slammed the law.

“It’s dangerous because it normalizes a profession that is always violent at its core,” said Julia Crumière, a volunteer at Isala, an NGO that helps street sex workers in Belgium. BBC.

Last year when the bill was published, the Council of Francophone Women of Belgium, a feminist group, described it as “catastrophic” for young girls and victims of human trafficking.

“To assume that prostitution exists and that we must protect workers is to accept this sexist violence and not to fight it,” the organization’s head said. Soiree.

What about other countries?

Sex work is legal in many countries, including Germany, New Zealand, Greece, the Netherlands, Turkey and some parts of Australia.

New Zealand law allows sex workers to refuse any client and also receive unemployment benefits.

In the US, Nevada is the only state where prostitution is legal but only in brothels. Last year, Maine scrapped penalties for sex workers, but there are still laws against those who buy sexual services.

Thailand has also tried to decriminalize sex work in recent years, but it remains illegal.

With input from agencies