Re-thinking sex work : a case study of Hong Kong female sex workers in the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

This study attempts to examine the impact of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic on female sex workers in Hong Kong by exploring their individual conditions, work-related impacts, and social impacts. The pandemic rendered a timely opportunity for exploring sex workers’ unique challenges and obstacles during the crisis and regarding the experiences of a marginalized and minority population in society during a particularly vulnerable period. The study primarily used qualitative methods for data collection by adopting semi-structured interviews from October 2022 to January 2023 with five sex workers who continue to practice in the one-apartment-one-sex-worker industry before, during and after the COVID-19 pandemic in Hong Kong. Findings revealed that while no physical impacts were reported, female sex workers (FSWs) endured various impacts from the pandemic, notably reduced incomes, a lack of access to healthcare services, and the inability to make a definitive decision on whether to work and bear the risk of contagion or to stop work and face the consequences of unsupportive living. The data collected also sheds light on the prevalence and exacerbated pre-existing stigmatization and discrimination of sex workers in Hong Kong. Participants agree that they seldom accept visits and assistance from non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and social workers for fear of their identities being exposed. Thus, the study asks questions about re-thinking sex work and the relationship between sex workers and stigmatization, as it portrays how stigmatization affected this socially marginalized group of workers who resisted social support and aid, particularly during the pandemic, a time when protection and assistance are paramount and necessary. In the end, the article suggests a comprehensive yet specialized intervention system tailored to the needs of sex workers for both members of the organizations and those who are not to further protect sex workers not only in case of future global disease outbreaks but also from the public and state perceptions about sex work and the people within.