It's one of an independent contractor, to the extent that.... Well, there are two issues. With escort agencies they're the agents, so there can actually be service providers to the women who are in prostitution, because they manage it from that.
That is one of the concerns we have with decriminalization of buying: that you could have.... None of these issues has been really researched to date, and it's a novel point coming forward, but one of the concerns you might have is that these bodyguards, who sometimes are called pimps, could actually end up being employees or service providers to the women who are in prostitution.
The women in prostitution are, in almost every location that I've considered so far, independent contractors, not employees, so they're not getting EI or CPP or pension benefits. Not only that, but they're responsible for paying their taxes and are responsible for paying the contributions to any worker's compensation scheme. So their protection under occupational health and safety regulations and worker's compensation depends on their participation and their payment into that too.
When you consider that in the context of the most vulnerable employees, the ones who are on the street or those who are operating from their homes, their protection will depend on their payment in.