sex worker

sex worker (plural sex workers)

1. A person who supplies sex work (short-term sexual services) in exchange for compensation.
   • 1995. Lesley Doyal, "What makes women sick: gender and the political economy of health", Page 226

     Most official attempts to monitor the health of sex workers have been designed to protect clients and society

   • 1999. Peter Aggleton, "Men who sell sex: international perspectives on male prostitution", Page 44

     Many were initiated into sex work through friends who were already sex workers, but others took the initiative themselves.

   • 2010. Marshall Barron Clinard, Robert F. Meier, "Sociology of Deviant Behavior", Page 350

     In an unusual move, Florida prosecutors charged not only the sex workers advertised on the Web site, but also the Web site owners and registered users of the site.

This term is promoted along with the idea that what has previously been termed prostitution should be recognized as work on equal terms with that of conventional jobs, with the legal implications this has. It is sometimes regarded as a less offensive alternative to prostitute, although "sex worker" has a much broader meaning.

• prostitute