Cabinet wants to improve the position of sex workers with new plan of action

The social and legal position of sex workers will be improved, outgoing State Secretary for Justice and Security Christophe van der Maat reported on Friday. This is necessary because sex workers often face unequal treatment compared to other workers due to prejudices about their profession, he noted. A plan of action was sent to the Tweede Kamer, the lower house of the Dutch parliament.

Developed on behalf of outgoing Minister Karien van Gennip of Social Affairs and Employment, this plan was formulated “in close collaboration with the sex industry.” It provides concrete solutions across five key areas: financial services, healthcare, police, municipalities, and communication and media.

The plan seeks to tackle the difficulties faced by sex workers in accessing financial services. They are often denied business bank accounts due to money laundering concerns and face challenges in obtaining insurance. The plan of action involves “bringing together” sex workers, banks, and insurers to establish agreements addressing these issues.

The document highlights that sex workers face difficulties in accessing healthcare due to prejudices against their profession. Instances include doctors unnecessarily advising them to quit their work or incorrectly attributing medical issues to their occupation. To combat these prejudices, an online course titled “help and care for sex workers” will be offered to healthcare providers.

According to the plan of action, sex workers frequently encounter prejudices that lead to them feeling undervalued by the police. This might partly explain why only one in five sex workers report instances of violence at work. To address this issue, a new educational module will be developed for police officer training. This module aims to increase awareness about sex workers and reduce biases.

The plan also aims to better inform sex workers about their rights and obligations when reporting crimes. “We are committed to enhancing understanding of sex work among municipal officials to eradicate prejudices,' the statement read.

The plan also noted that media and government portrayals of sex work are often biased, either stigmatizing, glorifying, or criminalizing the profession. To address this, several measures have been introduced to promote clearer and stigma-free communication about sex workers. These measures include a destigmatization workshop for civil servants, the development of guidelines for stigma-free communication, a photo exhibition, and the launch of an information website.