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A UK organisation has flagged that the number of women turning to sex work in order to cope with the cost-of-living crisis is rising. Its services operates in numerous cities across the country, advising women on how to remain safe at work and how to stay within the lines of the law.
With the growing popularity of adult content-sharing platforms such as OnlyFans, the definition of sex work has expanded and shifted further into mainstream consciousness.
Whereas traditional adult content production companies were ruled by a hierarchy of directors, producers, and film stars, OnlyFans has allowed those partaking in content-based sex work to take full control of their output.
All of these factors have led to the industry becoming somewhat destigmatised.
Sex work can even be perceived as an empowering and an attractive option for those looking to gain extra income. This rings truer during times of unpredictable economic hardship, such as the pandemic.
Though most of us are back to our day jobs, inflation is at the highest it’s been in three decades.
In the UK, it’s been reported that one in seven people are skipping meals to shave off household costs. For many, the brutal reality will be choosing between heating and eating throughout winter’s coldest months.
As a result, a support organisation for sex workers called the English Collective of Prostitutes has flagged a spike in the number of women engaging in sex work as a secondary job to survive financially.
No one should be pushed into sex work by poverty. But that’s the reality for many women in a cost of living crisis.
Criminalisation makes the industry more dangerous and harder to leave.
The solution is to fully decriminalise it + tackle the root causes.
Me on @Channel4News 👇🏽 pic.twitter.com/VSclvArZ7Y
— Nadia Whittome MP (@NadiaWhittomeMP) December 2, 2022
