Sex Workers – The Escort Service Of the 21st Century

Sex work by definition is the exchange of sex services for money or other material compensation. But there’s much more to this simple definition as sex work includes a variety of, let’s say, types. To be a sex worker means a lot of things starting from the exotic dancing to prostitution. Sex work is by no means related to non-consensual sex, that is, sex trafficking (sexual labor or exploitation) that also comes in many forms. So we should not link this gruesome crime with sex work as the actual profession.  

Sex work is said to be one of the oldest occupations so we can easily say that sex work is an ancient profession that has been around for a long time. It has gone through so many changes throughout history but essentially it stuck around and what we have today is a profession that is establishing its place in society. Sex work is more often related to street or brothel prostitution but there are actually many forms of this occupation. Exotic dancers, massage workers, phone sex services, escort services as well as porn industry actors all align under the term of sex work/sex workers. 

Web Performers As Sex Workers? 

Due to the development of technology, especially the internet in this case, what has become highly popular these days are webcam models which also form the type of sex workers. The so-called camming includes performers (cam girls or guys) performing some kind of sexual acts in front of the camera. The acts may be of various kinds from stripping, masturbating to just talking. Whatever the sex act, this kind of sex works has flooded the internet and today there are webcam performers to be found on every corner of the internet. There are so many websites that feature this kind of sex work and so many young girls earning either money or attention via this job. For example, Rampant TV or Studio 66 are one of the popular tube sites where you can find so many camgirls doing their work and performances in front of the camera. Just like with any kind of sex work, this is done in exchange for money, material compensation, or even just attention.  

Sex Workers Selling Their Services Online 

Sex work in the UK is legal. But actually there’s much more to it that doesn’t allow sex workers to have all the legal rights like other professions. This is a big issue and we’ll not deal with decriminalization of sex work in this text. But we should say that this is a big problem that needs attention that has even led many female sex workers to go out in the streets on International Women’s Day this year and protest for their labour rights.

Anyhow, let us go back to the online world of sex work. The internet has open many or even unlimited opportunities for all of us in many spheres. When it comes to people working in the sex industry, the internet became the main means of attracting customers. We’ve already mentioned web camming, but let’s say, more standard sex workers, or to be more precise, women who are offering sex for money have made the internet work in their favour. There are many web platforms where sex workers can easily reach customers, that is, clients.  

These sex worker websites are numerous today and they present a relatively safe environment where sex workers can have their clients reach them. And how this actually work? Well, first of all, sex workers have their own profiles where they can present themselves, which is quite similar to dating websites such as fabguy, for example, as well as services that they offer with prices included. This way, the clients know what they can expect, what is allowed and what is not. Also, the safety part comes from the fact that sex workers first get in touch with the clients and work out what the meeting would be like, what comes with the service, what are their rules which is quite important, as well as getting a slight sense what the client is like, and similar issues. It’s a simple yet an important arrangement of the details of the meeting so each side should know what to expect. On one hand, this is a safer way than street prostitution where no before-hand deal is made. But on the other hand, no meeting is ever 100% safe. This goes not only for sex work, but any kind of meeting with strangers such as online dating, and similar.  

UKPunting as a home of Sex Workers Reviews

We are all well used to leaving and reading online reviews for TV shows, movies, series, products, books, food, and all kinds of other stuff. But what about reviews on sex service and sex workers? Well, unfortunately, that is real as well. We say unfortunately as this comes with many issues that can badly affect the sex workers. We’ll discuss this further in the text, but let’s see first what is this really about.  

Well, the concept is quite simple. Just like there are restaurant reviews, there are reviews of sex workers and their services. Think of it as reading a review of a video game. It includes all information about it: what if offers, what you can expect from this game, how it functions, where you can buy it, how much it costs, its value, its description, its use, the reviewer’s personal experience, etc. Essentially what we get is a person being rated online on the basis of their service, looks, and much more. On one hand, you may think this isn’t such a bad thing. Customers should know what to expect from a service provider, but on the other hand, what we essentially get is clients rating sex workers in quite a degrading way. We are not trying to generalize things. Of course, there are reviews that are not at all degrading or insulting, but the great portion of it is not on the positive scale at all. 

The reviews of sex workers happen on public forums where all kinds of details are discussed with no particular rules applied. One of those forums and the most popular and most visited one in the UK is UK Punting. This is the place where you can find all kinds of topics related to the escort scene of Britain. All that happens in the UK sex worker world can be found out about at this forum. 

UKPunting – What Happens There? 

“…Off came the dress and I had my c**k in her mouth and ramming it balls deep…” 

Like explained above, this is a community forum where men get to write reviews, discuss, and rate sex workers. The men who leave the reviews are the men who hire sex workers and are called punters on the forum. So what actually happens is that after a ‘meeting’ with an escort lady/sex worker, the client shares his experience with other members of the UK punting forum. You may think that there’s nothing wrong with that. Yes, we thought so, too. But when you go deeper into the subject and start reading the reviews, you realize that there is something quite disturbing with the whole story of it. 

“…she is fat. And f***ing ugly. The layers of make up cannot hide this…” 

First of all, the men on the forum are not merely rating them and writing simple reviews. No, there’s much more to it. Insults, sexism, mockery are a big part of the reviews. You may find the so-called punters mocking women based on their physical appearance, discuss whether they look the same as in their pictures, comment on their bra sizes, and similar. This definitely strikes us as quite disrespectful. Our society has matured a lot through time, but we still haven’t learned anything about respecting others. And what is funny, you may find punters giving bad reviews to sex workers based on them spending too much money on public transport to get to the location of the sex worker. Well, that’s just nonsense. 

“Her body isn’t that attractive, stomach has marks on, not smooth skin, and not gym toned…” 

UK Punting Posing a Real Danger For Sex Workers 

Putting the insults and foul language on the side, what is much disturbing about all of this is putting those women in danger. What we’re aiming at is the fact that the ‘punters’ leave personal information such as women’s addresses and phone numbers on the forum. First of all, the main rule of the internet is not to make your personal information public due to your own safety. Following this rule is merely common sense. And what happens on UK Punting is not common sense at all. Particular members who leave the identity and address of women whom they pay for sex are directly putting those women in danger which is outrageous as many predators are just waiting for opportunities such as these. This can lead to serious and extremely dangerous situations. There’s no sense in that. And who will be responsible if anything bad was to happen to any woman due to this stupidity? Well certainly not the forum and its punters, that’s for sure. 

The Voice of Sex Workers on UK Punting Forum 

This is another issue that arises. Sex workers are allowed to create accounts at the forum and become a part of that community. But what actually happens when they start defending themselves and protecting their business? There have been situations when sex workers have been banned from the forum after they’ve spoken out. Where’s freedom of speech there? If a punter can discuss a sex worker and her services in detail writing an extensive review, why couldn’t a sex worker write something back? Well, this may remain an unanswered question. But it does tell us a lot about this forum: sex workers are there to be reviewed and not to have a say about anything written about them. Sounds ‘fair’, right? 

In Conclusion – A Lot Of Issues Behind the Scene of Sex Work   

Sex work is a controversial subject, to begin with. It has fought with so many negative connotations throughout history and today as well. But now that it is officially a profession and it’s legal, we are still left with so many problems regarding it. What sex workers are facing each day is just not right. If they are legally allowed to provide sex services then why are they not legally protected from being treated as not equal to other occupations? We don’t see people leaving disrespectful and mocking reviews of bank tellers along with their personal information made public. Why then there should be a forum that serves the demeaning purpose for sex workers? We should say that we are not generalizing and putting all the punters into the same basket. Not all reviews contain derogatory comments, but the whole concept of the forum is a bit too much, don’t you think?