I find myself becoming a huge fan of Andrew Leigh's articles. Keep up the good work Andrew. It would be nice if you put an RSS feed here: http://econrsss.anu.edu.au/~aleigh/opinion.htm, so it was easier to follow you.

Leigh wrote: “There are few standard findings in labour economics: wages generally rise over the lifecycle, there is a large pay premium for education, and women generally earn lower wages than men. Yet the world’s oldest occupation satisfies none of these criteria.”

Except for the last criterion the above applies to professional athletes. Most leave the profession at an early age and get no pay premium for education. If one lumps statistics for disparate entities there is absolutely no reason that any component entity should fit the statistics.

Leigh also wrote: “So it is perhaps not surprising that economists have only recently begun to turn their attention to understanding the economics of prostitution, and asking questions such as: why are wages so high? What policies best reduce sexually transmitted diseases? And is legalisation a good idea?”

His first question is partially answered by the last question. An attractive, illegal product comes at a high price. Neither economic theory the author cites to explain high wages of prostitutes makes this obvious connection (Is that a subliminal sexual reference?). One wonders at the competence of the theorists.

Leigh also wrote: “First, some basic facts. According to recent work by the Australian Institute of Family Studies (PDF 924KB), there are around 20,000 prostitutes working in Australia at any given time, suggesting that Australia has around twice as many prostitutes as dentists.”

Interesting juxtaposition. The depravity of filling the wrong cavity.

I favour neither the US or Swedish approach. I see no reason why prostitution should be considered a crime. Where it is a consensual act between adults it is nobody else’s business outside of taking precautions to limit spread of disease.

Why on earth would they consider banning prostitution?

The implication is that its ok to go the pub, get some girl pissed
enough and pay her enough compliments to get a freebie, but give
her a few hundred bucks to go shopping and its a crime! Crazy stuff.

Fact is that as marriage and relationships get bogged down in ever
larger legal squabbles over money, some guys just don't want all the
hassles that go with a relationship.

Plenty of married men are also seeking a bit of fun on the side,
as some wives misuse their control of sex as a weapon.

So its a market driven industry, great for some, not for others,
its all about choice these days.

Interesting essay but very skewed to the 'consumer' POV.

Assuming the perspective of the sex worker, the questions I would also ask are:

1. Are brothel/escort sex-workers paid per shift or per client? That is, if they are on call for an 8-hour shift, do they only get paid for client time or the full shift?

2. How much of the 'high' wages charged for brothel and escort services actually goes to the sex worker?

3. What is the standard of working conditions experienced by brothel workers in terms of hours, shift times, breaks, workplace safety, and medical and physical security?

4. How much fee disparity is there between brothel/escort wages in the legal and non-legal Australian states? That is, does legalisation bring the price down?

David f.

'The depravity of filling the wrong cavity.'

Many sex workers (male and female) actually take pride in their work. They deserve a bit more respect than being reduced to 'holes'. Or do you perceive sexuality in general - especially the female kind - as just a cavity to be filled?

Woman was created for mans pleasure. Woman who do not work give more pleasure than those that do.
If a female has a little to flog off so what.
You could ban it as much as ya like, but would it stop.
It would have to be a female to come up with something like this.

SJF:

1. Brothel/escort workers are paid per client, not per hour.

Note that brothel prostitutes are contractors, not employees.

2. Around 2/3 officially, but most workers collect substantial tips.

3. Highly variable. Some brothels are very supportive of workers, while others are exploitative. That's why greater regulation is needed.

Each state has sex worker safety/education organisations, but they vary in effectiveness and access to brothels. Dodgy brothels can be quite hostile to outsiders inspecting their affairs.

4. I don't believe so. Women generally won't do sex work for little pay, and why would they?

Crude as it is, rates are more dependant on the sex appeal of the worker than on industry status.