![]() The state currently is not involved in licensing clubs or dancers, which is what some county and city governments do. Right now, the state Department of Labor and Industries inspects only after receiving complaints - five in the past 10 years, mostly involving tripping, strained muscles and broken glass, with no hospitalizations or violations resulting from the incidents. Orwall is also pondering whether the state government should get involved in proactive inspections. Legal protections might be installed for dancers wanting to call police, Orwall added. “We’re trying to help them have a voice,” she said.Ī bill could address consistency in house fees and provisions in those fees for dealing with slow shifts, she speculated. Orwall said they are unsure what a workplace safety bill for exotic dancers will eventually look like. To Orwall, exotic dancing’s world is prone to sexual assault - an area in which she has taken a legislative interest with work on such topics as backlogs in the handling of rape kits and DNA tests involving sexual assaults. Rebecca Saldaña, D-Seattle, are thinking about tackling workplace safety bills for exotic dancers. The advocates - Jeri Moomaw of Innovations HTC, which tackles human trafficking, and Rachel Lauter, executive director of both Working Washington and the Fair Work Center - pointed to a 2017 University of Minnesota study of working conditions in strip clubs that echoed concerns raised by the Seattle dancers. Two Seattle strip-club officials and two representatives from advocacy organizations also testified. Watkins and Ashley did follow-up interviews at a later date. Topps and Watkins briefed the Washington House Labor & Workplace Standards Committee on Dec. That can be a big problem, the dancers say, because the common, informal practice is that performers won’t be able to work again at that particular club until they pay up the rent still owed from a previous shift. Watkins, in her late 30s, has three sons and is paying college tuition for two.īut on the inevitable slow nights, a dancer can’t even make enough to pay off the initial house fee. On a busy shift, dances and tips pile up. A dancer has little control over the working conditions, and safety issues, they say, boil down to how well a dancer tips the bouncers to look after her.Īnd the money from exotic dancing can be very good - once a dancer earns that initial $180 to $400 to pay the strip club (both figures were cited in interviews). But it is a business model that is a two-edged sword. Exotic dancers are independent contractors, technically small businesses, who frequently can pick their own hours. They especially enjoy the money and independence. She and another woman, who wanted to be known as Ashley, have been doing this for roughly 20 years. ![]() Watkins and two other dancers who Crosscut interviewed later said they like their work. In advance of the legislative session that starts next week, the labor committee of the state House last month held a hearing, reported on at the time by some news outlets, on the work conditions at the clubs. It’s a business model that some Washington legislators think could be unfair and they might want to change it, for both the economic well-being and the safety of the dancers. But in both cases, a third of the money goes to the club. A standard charge for a lap dance is $30, and for a dancer to spend 15 minutes in a VIP room, a customer usually pays $150. So Watkins starts each shift in the red and has to hustle plenty of dances just to get herself in the black. Some managers need to be tipped so Watkins can avoid hassles with scheduling, including getting access to the more lucrative VIP rooms. Deejays get a tip so they’ll play songs she likes when she dances up front on stage. No tip might mean no protection in the lot as she heads to her car. They keep guys from pawing and assaulting her in the club or in the parking lot.
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