How Covid-19 affects prostitution markets in the Netherlands and Belgium: dynamics and vulnerabilities under a lockdown

ABSTRACT

We document how prostitution markets reacted to the Covid-19 induced lockdown mid-March 2020, based on unique data for the Netherlands and Belgium. Anecdotal evidence indicates that a general glut occurred. Data about who exited from the market indeed reveal a severe downturn. We also show a significant substitution toward less visible forms of sex work after the lockdown too. Furthermore, in the Netherlands compliance was more swift and thorough than in Belgium. For those who kept supplying sexual services, fixed effects hedonic regressions provide evidence that sex workers invested more time per transaction, but this did not translate in a higher income. Existing wage penalties for vulnerable age groups and ethnic minorities stayed in place, but were not exacerbated by the lockdown.

KEYWORDS:

• Prostitution
• sex work
• lockdown
• Covid-19
• Netherlands
• Belgium

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 Own calculations. More information in the data section.

2 Welch's t-test = –14.2; p < 0.0001.

3 Welch's t-test = –3.4917; p < 0.0003.

4 Welch's t-test = –3.0574; p < 0.0012.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Anahita Azam

Anahita Azam recently received a Master of Economics from KU Leuven. Her research focus is in applying quantitative methods to study the dynamics of prostitution markets in Belgium and the Netherlands. Prior to that, she received a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Toronto's Rotman School of Management, and has professional experiences in commercial banking, public ministry, and private alternative funds, allowing her to develop expertise about the Canadian financial sector.

Stef Adriaenssens

Stef Adriaenssens is a sociologist teaching courses in Economic Sociology and in Policy at the Faculty of Economics and Business (Brussels campus of KU Leuven). His core research interests involve underground, informal, and poorly protected economic activities and groups. More specifically, he published about topics as diverse as tax evasion, black market work, and activities and groups that are often hardly recognized as work(ers), such as begging and prostitution.

Jef Hendrickx

Jef Hendrickx is Mathematician and Statistician. His teaching includes Statistics, Econometrics, Quantitative Methods and Research Methodology. His main research interests include the fields of informal and underground economies, and hard to reach populations and behaviour. Methodologically his core interests are in mixed and multilevel method modelling, and those (big) data and techniques that allow for the analysis of sensitive, informal and underground activities.