What does collective bargaining look like for ESPU?
Well depending what part of the industry you work in and who you identify as your boss, your collective bargaining could look like:
Getting everyone who works for your ‘company’ talking about the ‘contract’ or the agreement you have with support staff. Now for many, this can look like something you signed which is between you and the ‘company’. Is it something everybody was asked to sign? Are you an independent contractor or an employee? Are the other people you work with ID or employees? Are there different pay scales for different people? Can you negotiate your own rates with the clients? Your own services, your own work conditions? If you operate a referral service, or provide support staff services are you an at will employee? Are you the primary contractor or vender or are the people you give referrals to the primary contractors or venders? Some erotic service providers don’t see themselves fitting into these predetermined categories and can feel disenfranchised because of it. Some want to be IC to be able to set our own work hours but want all the worker protections that employees have, like not being discriminated against for age, race, gender…or having recourse for sexual harassment or other forms retaliation.
How would having an agreements with independents or those who work in cooperatives effect your income and safety?
If your boss are the tax payers, how can you get them to the bargaining table with you? How do you want your ‘contract’ to look like?
If our boss is our clients, how do we negotiate for using a safety device if negotiating liables us for the violence of arrest and prosecutions?
What could our collective power gain us?
Provision of benefits to members: provided a range of benefits like healthcare, pension funds to insure members against unemployment, ill health, old age and funeral expenses. In many developed countries, these functions have been assumed by the state; however, the provision of professional training, legal advice and representation for members is still an important benefit union membership.
Industrial action could look like organize strikes or resistance to lockouts in furtherance of particular goals.
Political activity: promote legislation favorable to the interests of their members or workers as a whole. To this end they may pursue campaigns, undertake lobbying, or financially support individual candidates or parties for public office.