The new law in Belgium, which came into force over the weekend, grants sex workers formal employment contracts and legal protections similar to other workers.
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00:00In a revolutionary move, Belgian sex workers are now able to sign formal employment contracts
00:07and gain labour rights on par with other professions.
00:10The new law also establishes fundamental rights for sex workers, including the right to refuse
00:15clients, choose their practices and stop and act at any moment.
00:19I think the advantages of the new law are that you can easily apply for loans at the
00:25bank, you can easily apply for insurances, and that it will be better for us if we retire.
00:36And if you are sick, we can also get our pension.
00:42Hoping to clamp down on abuse and exploitation within the industry, the law means sex workers
00:48will now have access to health insurance, paid leave, maternity benefits, unemployment
00:53support and pensions.
00:55My biggest fear is that the ladies will go home faster, so they will be more likely to
01:02be sick, even though they don't really have anything.
01:06Of course we don't know that, we can never say.
01:10I know that happens in all sectors, but I hope that won't be the case here.
01:16Yes, I hope so.
01:19Though some countries like Germany or the Netherlands have legalised sex work, none
01:23have implemented labour protections as comprehensive as Belgium.