HOOK-UP apps like Tinder and Grindr that provide easy access to free casual sex aren't affecting Tasmanian sex workers, the industry says.
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A report in The Age last week revealed some Victorian brothels had experienced a 30-40 per cent dip in profits over the past year, with some introducing private escort services to help build revenue.
Brothels are illegal in Tasmania as is street work, however, private sex work is allowed as long as no more than two women work out of the same building.
It also seems that the state's commercial sex industry has not been hit as hard as on the mainland.
Scarlet Alliance state co-ordinator Jade Barker said the Tasmanian sex industry had been steady for some time.
She said the sex workers had been progressive in utilising the benefits of online communication for both marketing purposes and for sharing information within the sex work community.
She said hook-up apps and the industry was hard to compare.
"One is a commercial attraction and one is not," she said.
It is unknown exactly how many men and women work in the sex industry in Tasmania.
"Fear of discrimination remains the biggest hurdle in terms of communication and contact with sex workers," Ms Barker said.
Ms Barker said the sex work communities in the North and North-West remained isolated.
"Not just in terms of geography, but also in terms of a lack of available and-or cuts to existing services," she said.
She said for sex workers to be less marginalised, it would require:
● sex industry workplaces to be decriminalised;
● sex work to be recognised as a legitimate work choice;
● recognition that the workplaces require industrial and safety guidelines like anywhere else; more advocacy services for sex workers;
● more community education about the realities of the sex industry, sex worker rights and sex industry laws;
● and increased awareness of sex worker issues among relevant services including Police and Sexual Health.