A Provider Code of Ethics

[upherbum]

I read an interesting list lately which I suppose could be defined as the Hammurabi Code for providers:
http://www.naughtyreviews.com/forum/hobbyist-hangout/a-provider-s-code-of-ethics

I think most responsible providers would agree with the gist of this list of do's and dont's but what I wanted to ask is whether you guys thought that this kind of code could be used as the basis for some kind of Better Business Bureau type association of providers. Hobbyists who saw that a provider was a member could rest assured they were going to get what they paid for. Anyway, I thought it was a pretty cool idea and I think the code covers all the bases.

 

[FortunateOne]

For those who like more details:

http://www.realprincessdiaries.com/2009/03/alternative-providers-code-of-ethics-draft/

Why have a code of ethics?

A code of ethics offers an invaluable opportunity for us as a profession, as individuals, to create a positive public identity which can (hopefully) lead to a more supportive political and regulatory environment, as well as an increased level of confidence and trust among our potential clients as well as the general public. That you subscribe to a set of ethical standards reflects that you take your work seriously and respect the desire of your clientele to want to see someone who is legitimate, honest, and operates within an identifiable set of standards.

Alternative Provider’s Code of Ethics

Preamble

Sex-related work of any type is generally looked down upon by many in society. This, despite a long historical record of sex workers being among the most cherished and valued people in many civilizations; many were among the elite of their time. One who undertakes sex-related work as a primary profession or as an adjunct to another profession realizes that s/he exposes the most personal of space to the client in exchange for financial or practical remuneration. This close interaction requires a very high level of trust be established between the worker and the client, and it is critical that the client understand that s/he knows that s/he is dealing with someone who adheres to a strong code of ethics.

The sex worker, regardless of the specific genre of work engaged in, should strive to accomplish three major goals:

* Provide valuable, beneficial, safe, and pleasurable service to the client,
* Ensure personal boundaries and health of either party are not compromised, that you maintain your dignity and integrity, and that you don’t compromise your own personal ethos, and
* Reflect positively upon the profession as a whole.

Voluntary subscription to a code of ethics has historically been one way to demonstrate the commitment to excellence in any profession. Commensurately, I hereby adopt this Alternative provider’s Code of Ethics as my own.

This code of ethics is predicated upon the following assumption of rights;

* I reserve the right to screen clients and determine who I will see and who I will not see, and under what conditions.
* I reserve the right to set my own boundaries, and to have my clients to respect them.
* I reserve the right to refuse to see a client for any reasonable reason, including if the client refuses to accept my personal boundaries and play limitations, or engages in behavior I deem inappropriate.
* I reserve the right to determine how I use my personal attributes to make a living, and to be respected for the decisions that I make.
* I reserve the right to be treated as a human being, with full agency and all other rights due me, including the right to petition for redress under all relevant civil and criminal laws of my country. I have every expectation that law enforcement agencies and the judicial system will treat me with the same dignity and respect they afford all other complainants.

Code of Ethics

General Conduct

* I will enter and practice this profession of my own free will, under duress from no other party, understanding the true nature of the work I’ll be doing.
* I will exhibit a sincere commitment to providing a quality experience for the client.
* I will respect my clients as human beings and not treat them as anything less than how I expect to be treated.
* I will respect my client’s physical, emotional, and spiritual boundaries.
* I will maintain and improve professional knowledge and competence, striving for excellence through regular assessment of personal and professional strengths and weaknesses and through continued education and training.

Business Practices

* I will not use bait and switch tactics to lure clients under false assumptions or pretenses.
* I will respect my client’s confidentiality, and not, under any circumstances, divulge the names or other identifying features of my clients.
* I will not defraud or cheat a client.
* I will advertise my services and skills honestly and not misrepresent what I am prepared to do or the skills that I have.
* I will plainly state my fees in advertising and on my web site(s) and not engage in unfair attempts to upcharge or upsell clients.
* I will not submit false information about clients to blacklists and similar reporting venues.
* I will recognize that there is a wide variance in acceptable behavior and identity when it comes to human sexuality, strive to accept those variations in my clients, and accommodate those variances when they do not conflict with my own personal ethos or skill levels

Safety and Health

* I will adopt and use appropriate safe sex practices consistent with the nature and scope of play as negotiated between myself and my client.
* I will not practice my trade if I am sick or ill without disclosing my illness(es) to my client before any personal contact.
* I will not entertain clients if I am physically, emotionally, or spiritually impaired to the point where I cannot ensure my safety, the safety of my client, and meet my client’s expectations.
* I will not engage in any activity during my time with my clients that knowingly exposes them to potential physical or psychological danger without their express, informed consent.

Respect for the Profession

* I will not advocate or condone non-consensual sex work, or sex work involving minors, and will report the existence of such behavior to appropriate authorities.
* I will not entertain minors as defined by the jurisdiction in which I work, regardless of the age of consent in that jurisdiction.
* If asked, I will provide honest, legitimate advice and information to those who inquire about working in this profession.

 

[susi]

this is not us, so NOT the same group

we are the BCCEC or WCCSIP

we are still writting ours.we are designing a realy complete and comprehensive occupational hea;th and safety training for all aspects of the sex industry- adult film, dancing, web cam, escorting, drivers, bouncers, booking girls...etc probably 200 pages
but i like this...we could develope something like this for our industry association. we would all have to agree on the terms but i think this is easy to adhere to...
should be done in sept.thanks again to everyone who took part!!

ours also has a CUSTOMER CODE OF CONDUCT!!!lol

susieXXXO

 

[treveller]

Expectation of Good Conduct

this is not us, so NOT the same group

we are the BCCEC or WCCSIP

we are still writting ours....
should be done in sept.thanks again to everyone who took part!!

ours also has a CUSTOMER CODE OF CONDUCT!!!lol

Good to see the customers as one of the guilds.

Has there been any consideration of a criminal record check for the sex work clients and providers? Perhaps as something that might be implimented in the future once the association is established and the code is in place.

 

[susi]

here's a little of what's being written....

the first part is the chapter introduction and then i skipped alot to get to the "treat your clients well" section....feel free to comment- this is the beginning of chapter three in the Trade Secrets Occupational Health and Safety training-

Chapter Three – Our Clients

“I have, for the most part, been grateful to my customers. I have been a very lonely person, so I appreciated the company. For many years, my customers treated me really well. As my addiction got stronger (alcohol and cocaine), my customers became more abusive because I started working in scarier areas and loving myself a lot less. I didn’t respect them. I became more cold.”

According to Canadian sex industry workers, most clients are kind and generous. The stereotypical image of clients as mentally unstable outcasts is unfair and untrue. Sex is a natural, primal desire of humans. The fact that some people feel inclined to pay for it does not make them bad people.

However, due to stigma towards sex industry workers, bad people do find us to be easy targets. They know they can harm us with near impunity (legal or moral), unlike harming Teacher Tammy or Doctor Doris. For this reason, and many others, it is important for all of us to manage our relationships with our clients with the big picture in mind.

Try to avoid repeat performances from patrons who are “cheap,” refuse to pay for services, and those who become violent (among other things) by sharing information with other workers. If there is an organization that distributes bad trick information, read their sheets and warn others when appropriate.

You can reduce the need to take risks with strangers by nurturing relationships with regulars who are safe and consistent.

This chapter will focus on managing relationships with your clients.


Treat Your Clients Well

“The type of customer we get depends on where we meet them. If we are on the internet in a higher paying site, we meet that customer. If we are under a dark bridge at four in the morning, we meet that customer. If you have an attitude like you’re going to rip off a customer or are being a haughty bitch, the customer will reflect that attitude. We are also in their space; our energy can change the mood.”

The following tips will help you promote safe and healthy experiences with your clients, and protect other sex industry workers as well.


 Be honest and upfront from the beginning. Let them know you aren’t looking for trouble.
 Treat customers with the same respect you would like to be treated with.
 Don’t rip off customers.
 Do not lie about yourself (weight, hair colour, non-smoker, etc). Overt false advertising makes the customers mad - sometimes bringing them to act violently towards their next service provider.
 Do not steal from their home. If you want more money, raise your rates and learn some new skills to provide a better service.
 With Domination, you hear a lot of crazy requests. Try to be as non-judgemental as possible, but feel comfortable in asserting your boundaries.
 Be careful when attempting to expand your services. If you change your mind after you’ve tried to offer something new (Greek, etc), you could get assaulted as many clients hate to be refused once in session.
 Treat each customer the same regardless of how you feel about him or her personally.
 Understand that the way you treat a client will have a ripple effect on the next sex industry worker and so on. Have each other’s backs.
 Perform what you have negotiated.
 Treat them like people. You're a customer service professional, your job is to provide a person with a service, not look down on him for seeking the service.
 Respect your client’s right to privacy.
 Engaging in fun conversation is part of the territory. This can include some personal topics and questions. Whenever you talk about something personal, be sure to include a non-intrusive comment such as “…if you don’t mind my asking”.
 Be nice to the nice ones. If they are mean, end the session immediately.
 Agree on a price, time, location, etc and stick to it. They don’t like surprises any more than we do.
 Don’t humiliate them (unless that’s a part of the agreement).
 Don’t leave marks (unless that’s a part of the agreement).
 Always remember – you’re in charge. That means the work is on your terms and on your time. Don’t compromise your values or your safety. For example, if you have set a limit at no contact, or no GFE, don’t let the customer convince you to change your mind in the middle of your session.
 Maintain healthy boundaries – they are a client, not your boyfriend /girlfriend. Respect that they have a life outside of you.
 Do not treat clients with contempt because of their appearance, their age, their penis size, the length of time it took them to reach orgasm, or their race.
 If you treat clients well with all your heart, they can feel it.
 Know your own personal boundaries and communicate these clearly to your customers. Do not let customers persuade you to go beyond the boundaries you have set for yourself. Do not let other workers' personal boundaries influence your own behaviour.
 Do an interview to find out his interests or if he has disabilities (joint problems) before the session starts and let him know the protocol (behaviour) then.
 Make sure your client has a safe word or hand movement if gagged.
 Be personable. Sometimes they want to talk.
 Don’t clock watch
 Treat your client with honesty as far as what is consistent with the entertainment and fantasy aspects of the service.

 

[susi]

this is suggestions in the form of occupational health and safety training...

so nothing is forcing to people to adhere to the rules. these giudlines will hopefully become the foundation of the industry association...

here are the recommendations from the report around this idea and the reason for the development of the occupational health and safety training....

SEX INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION


During the “Developing Capacity for Change Project” - CoOp development work shops, workers expressed how a trade association and a branding or certification process could support safer work conditions over all and stabilize the existing safer indoor venues that exist now. The development of occupational health and safety training was also seen as a way to give people entering and in the sex industry the tools to make safe decisions about their work. It was agreed that all stake holders including business owners and consumers should be engaged to contribute to the design of the future of our industry.

Currently a charter challenge is underway to bring down the laws governing sex work. This action will only be successful if as an industry we can prove our ability to self govern and police ourselves. In the next 10 years we must agree to respect each other and treat each other with dignity. This will be an enormous task but an absolutely necessary one none the less. If we cannot demonstrate the ways in which we have traditionally maintained the stability of our industry, the system at large will most likely impose whatever laws it sees fit and we as an industry will be faced with another disaster.

With this in mind, the BCCEW/C set out to engage sex industry workers in beginning the process and determining whether or not there is industry support for such an action and what the structure of such an organization might look like.

Actions / Recommendations
The following actions and recommendations emerged as common themes from dialogue with all stake holders including consumers, business owners and workers.

"Establish a consortium of sex industry stakeholders to develop an Industry Association and negotiate where there are areas of commonality. ie. violence, consumer theft, health and safety, and industry stability."
Relevance

Sex Industry Workers

Stability for the sex industry means jobs and safe places to work. If the industry bands together behind some basic minimum standards, the greater community will no longer be able to attack business owners arbitrarily. This will mean fewer closures of these businesses and more places to work. The systematic vilifying of business owners has lead to the loss of most safe work options for sex industry workers and pushed some workers to chose work options beyond their personal physical boundaries (17 show lounges have closed in the last couple of years and forced some exotic dancers to chose other forms of sex work such as escorting) The minimum standards aspect will mean that workers can distinguish which businesses are good to work for and which may not be. The Industry Association will provide a tool for sex industry workers to make safe decisions about their work.

Sex Industry Business Owners

Stability for the sex industry means a business owner’s lively hood and hard work will no longer be subject to uninformed scrutiny by police, license inspectors, and so called “good will” groups promoting the abolition of the sex industry.) History has shown us how the greater community has targeted business owners and cast them as pimps, abusers, traffickers and “organized crime”. An Industry Association could de-mystify our industry and advocate on behalf of longstanding businesses that have provided safe and stabile work environments distinguishing them from those who may be of a less honorable cast. New business owners could also be educated on the minimum required standards and insure a level playing field for all.

Sex Industry Consumers

Stability for the sex industry means that consumers will be able to engage sex workers use a business’s services secure in the knowledge that they will be treated with dignity and respect and be able to engage in these activities safely. Also, a consumer would be able to support ethical business practices and the businesses that uphold them.

Greater Community outside of Sex Industry

Stability for the sex industry means that the greater community will no longer have to wonder about conditions within the industry or be forced to impose uninformed actions against it. Through development of minimum standards and occupational health and safety training the greater community can be comfortable in the knowledge that sex industry workers are being given the tools to make safe decisions and have safe places to work.

This will remove the burden of sex industry governance from people whose actions have historically (for more than 100 years) had disastrous effects for the safety and quality of life of Vancouver’s sex industry workers.

The greater communities concerns are generally centered on the street level sex trade. The public sex acts, violence, unwanted advances from consumers and condom mess reflect the lack of safer indoor jobs in the sex industry. The systematic removal of these safer indoor environments must be halted to stem the number of workers entering the dangerous street level trade. It is hoped that through education and industry stabilization the numbers of sex industry workers working in harmful conditions will dramatically decrease.

"Develop Standardized Health and Safety Training for Sex Industry Workers and consumers in partnership with ALL stakeholders including business owners."

Relevance

Sex Industry Workers

Standardized Health and Safety Training will give sex industry workers clear and concise information about their work. It will give them the tools to make safe decisions about engaging business owners, engaging consumers, safe sex, their emotional health, and about finding support should they need it.

Sex Industry Business Owners

Standardized health and safety training would mean business owners could prove they had provided their employees with the information necessary to work safely. Most business owners do provide training for employees and are very conscious of the safety of their workers. However, they have never been able to demonstrate their attention to this most important aspect of the sex industry. Through a standardized training system developed in partnership with ALL stakeholders (including business owners) these ethical, safe and healthy business practices could be recognized and supported.

Sex Industry Consumers

Standardized health and safety training will also include information for consumers. Because of criminalization, consumers have been cast as somehow dysfunctional, rapists, and perverts. This makes it difficult for them to ask for information about their sexual health and the risks involved with engaging in the sex industry. This will provide consumers the tools to make safe decisions when purchasing sex industry services. Also, consumers engaging sex industry workers or businesses who are members of the industry association can be assured that the workers are well versed in safe and healthy sex work practices.

Greater Community outside of Sex Industry

Standardized health and safety training will allow the greater community to be confident that all sex industry stakeholders have been given the tools they need to protect their health (including exiting and support services), safety and stability while engaging in the sex industry.

"Develop and implement a certification process in partnership with all stakeholders to stabilize and promote sex industry businesses (inclusive of independent workers as businesses). Design an industry association seal or brand to distinguish those businesses that support and have received certification for the negotiated health and safety standards and training."

Relevance

Sex Industry Workers

Developing a certification process in partnership with all stakeholders will allow sex industry workers to insure their concerns and insight are addressed and included. An industry association seal will allow workers to distinguish which businesses support safe work environments and support the minimum negotiated standards.

Sex Industry Business Owners

Developing a certification process in partnership with all stakeholders will allow business owners to insure their concerns and experience are included, that the process is accessible and within reason as far as the operation of sex industry businesses. An industry association seal would allow businesses to distinguish themselves in the market for consumers and potential employees as businesses who support safe work environments and the minimum negotiated standards.

Sex Industry Consumers

The industry association seal will allow consumers to make ethical choices in the sex industry businesses they choose to support.

Greater community outside of Sex Industry

The industry association certification process and industry association seal will allow the greater community to make informed decisions about any actions taken against the sex industry. Blanket assumptions about our industry and the businesses engaged in it from the past have had disastrous results for our industry. The certification and seal will protect those businesses who do support health and safety from being targeted and allow the greater community to support actions in relation to the sex industry from a better informed perspective.

 

[susi]

"Design a complaints process and penalty system in partnership with all stakeholders to provide a system of self governance and enforcement for the sex industry."
Relevance

Sex Industry Workers

Sex workers have never had a way to report unethical business owners or dangerous business practices. A balanced system of investigation and penalty would begin to stabilize the health and safety of sex industry workers and eliminate the increasing number of dangerous working environments emerging as a result of our industry being pushed further and further underground.

Sex Industry Business Owners

Sex Industry business owners have also never had a way to complain about industry workers who take advantage of their good business practices or steal clients. This would allow these problems to also face due process and protect business owners from these types of behaviors.

Business owners would also be able to protect themselves from industry workers making false allegations about their business practices.

A process of self governance and enforcement would take these issues out of the hands of the greater community and prevent decisions being made by an outside party with no understanding of our history and traditions. This would mean the police, license inspectors and “end the sex industry” groups would no longer have the power to completely disrupt our lively hoods and jeopardize our safety.

Sex Industry Consumers

Sex industry consumers have never been able to lodge complaints about bad service or business practices except in the on-line forums where “service providers” are reviewed. Offences like being robbed or noticing a worker appears to be too young are difficult to report due to the stigma and close scrutiny an investigation can bring on the consumer himself.

A community based process which ensures the confidentiality of complainants will allow this process to work without harming peoples personal lives and stability.

Greater Community outside of Sex Industry

The greater community has always felt the need to carry the burden of policing our industry. Through this confidential, community based process this will no longer be necessary. Businesses that go beyond what is reasonable (marketing youth, trafficking persons) can be identified and prosecuted without causing widespread de-stabilization of the entire industry.

"Support the formation of craft unions or trade guilds for all aspects or jobs within the sex industry."

The Sex Industry is as diverse as the people who engage in it and encompasses more that actual one on one physical contact sex work. There are many job choices within actual sex work and there are also all of the support positions. This is an Industry and all employees’ health, safety, and job security are important. Once the industry is stabilized and self governing different craft or trade guilds could form to support issues specific to different sex industry workers and businesses.

Sex Work Diversity - some of the identified genres of sex work include: Exotic Dancing, Web Cam work, pornography, massage, escorts, male hustlers, phone sex, and on street sex work.

Sex Industry Support Staff - some examples of support staff are: booking girls, djs, waitresses, bartenders, bouncers, camera people, make up people, producers, film editors, computer experts, security guys, drivers, and costume makers.

These work specific guilds could allow dialogue between more experienced and less experienced workers and improve knowledge specific to their individual work. The sharing of knowledge would allow sex industry capacity to increase over all.

The Industry Association could act as a bridge between these craft unions should any issues arise between them and facilitate reasonable negotiation between all sides.

"Establish a system of communications between the sex industry and those agencies who have traditionally had the role of policing or monitoring the industry such as the police, license inspectors and social work/ support agencies to prevent misunderstandings about safety issues within the industry."

These agencies have taken action against the sex industry with disastrous effects in the past. A system through which these actions can be vetted by or scrutinized by the industry itself is necessary to prevent these problems repeating themselves in the future. The lived experiences of sex industry workers, consumers and business owners are key to actions that will have meaningful and sustainable impacts on the safety of the entire community.

 

[susi]

one last thing,

if anyone, consumer,business owner,worker would like to contribute your knowledge and expertise we would appreciate your input. pm me and i will send you the questionnaire.

love susieXXXO