Sex workers with the right to contract, sickness, holidays, maternity leave and pension. It happens in Belgium, which officially becomes the first country in the world to have a law that classifies workers in the sector like any other employee. Objective of the Belgian Parliament? Put a stop to exploitation and a billion-dollar black economy. And in Italy? Prostitution in 2023 produced a turnover of just under 5 billion euros. It is one of the main drivers of the illegal underground economy in our country.
The Belgian law entered into force on 1 December. Equiparando il lavoro sessuale a qualsiasi altra professione la normativa consente ai sex workers di sottoscrivere contratti di lavoro regolari, accedere a diritti fondamentali (come malattia, disoccupazione, ferie retribuite, maternità e pensione) e garantisce una tutela legale mai vista prima. In 2022, Belgium decriminalized sex work. Now the recognition of all rights as in any other profession. Secondo il sindacato belga delle lavoratrici del sesso, si tratta di un “enorme passo avanti” nella lotta alla discriminazione e allo sfruttamento. Per le lavoratrici, questa riforma rappresenta la possibilità concreta di uscire dalla precarietà: ottenere un prestito bancario, stipulare una polizza assicurativa, accedere a un sistema pensionistico.
The legislation also introduces strict obligations for employers, come garantire condizioni igieniche adeguate e misure di sicurezza, inclusi pulsanti antipanico e contraccettivi disponibili nei luoghi di lavoro. However, some critical voices have been raised: on the one hand, there are those who fear abuse of the new protections and on the other feminist groups denounce the risk of “normalizing” a system that perpetuates sexist violence.
And in Italy? Prostitution fuels an underground economy which in 2023 generated a turnover of around 5 billion euros. According to the latest Istat data, it is a business that affects 3 million Italians and in 2022 it employed 90 thousand permanent workers and 20 thousand casual workers (working occasionally due to economic necessity). Among them there are 9% minors and 60% foreigners from Eastern Europe and Africa. The most active regions (Susini Group estimates) are Lombardy, with a turnover of 850 million euros, followed by Lazio and Campania. This is a sector which, if regulated, could bring over 2.6 billion euros a year into the state coffers.
Istat places prostitution among the main illegal activities (after drug trafficking with an added value of 15.1 billion euros in 2022) which contribute to the national GDP. In 2022, the added value of the sex market grew by 4.3%. Overall, the underground and illegal activities generated 201.6 billion euros, equal to approximately 10% of GDP.
