Dutch Prostitutes Want Same Pension Perks As Footballers
Dutch prostitutes are fighting to receive the same pension perks as professional football players (soccer players, to us Americans). The campaign is happening with the help of Freya, a company looking to run several brothels in the city of Utrecht, according to Dutch newspaper Volkskrant.
“Footballers and prostitutes both do a difficult physical job that they cannot do their whole life,” Freya lawyer Wil Post said Tuesday to Volkskrant. “Therefore, they would like to be able to save as much as they can.” She added, “Men prefer young women: there always comes an age when prostitutes no longer get any work.”
Post says Dutch authorities should give Freya’s employees the same pension options available to professional athletes, who can put up to 5,000 euros ($6,874 USD) into a tax-free pension account each month.
Post went on to argue that prostitutes are actually less financially stable after retirement than athletes. “Unlike footballers, prostitutes have no future career prospects such as coaching or merchandising opportunities,” she said according to the BBC.
Combined with the lack of saving options, this makes many sex workers stay in the business more than they’d like. Post argued to Volkskrant, “It can take a prostitute more than 10 years to stop working because she’s trapped as she can’t save money.”
Prostitution in the Netherlands has been a legal and regulated industry since 2000, and prostitutes can qualify for unemployment benefits and state pension. Businesses like Freya offer contracts and salaries for the controversial workers.
