Why are we forcing women to stay in sex work?

[SummerFeverVenice]

Primary school teacher was struck off for moonlighting as a sex worker. It all started with an anonymous letter outing her on the website she used to advertise. Selling sex in England and Wales is perfectly legal. This isn’t like she was selling class A drugs.
https://www.lbc.co.uk/news/primary-school-teacher-struck-off-after-anonymous-letter-exposed-her-as-1-600-a/

This has upset me as she should not have been struck off for something that is technically a legal side hustle. It is putting a scarlet letter on her and causing her to now be forced to do sex work under severe economic duress. She’s lost her entire career.

As a feminist, we should be encouraging women not to do or continue to do sex work if they have a better option to earn money, like teaching in a primary school. We shouldn’t be excluding sex workers from these jobs.

In my opinion, she should have been given a warning to cease and desist sex work or be moved into an admin position. It seems to me that her being struck off was punishing her for being a “whore” by dooming her to have no other option to survive than more sex work. It feels all very Victorian fallen womanish to me. The admin position is more a reluctant concession on my part towards prudish parents who get up in arms at the thought of their child being taught their ABCs by a sex worker because they think immorality is contagious.

Which is strange because we all know that the upper class fathers were having sex with their children’s governesses and nannies and these children all turned out to be pillars of the community, some even went on to be ordained archbishops.

“It’s so sexist to strike her off.“

It is only sexist to strike her off if men can be both sex workers and teachers.

All jobs have clear contracts, if someone doesn’t like the terms thats fine, but the options are to either follow them and remain in employment or choose a different employer. I’m not a teacher and I don’t work with children in my main job, I would be fired if I was a sex worker. Unless she is incredibly stupid she will have been well aware if she was ever found out she would lose her job.

The options aren’t sex worker or teacher, if she wishes she could take another career path.

Your invented statistics are a bit bizarre, why not use actual real statistics?

You're off your trolley OP.

Teachers are paid relatively well. I know plenty of teachers who seem to manage fine without doing sex work on the side. If she felt the pinch, she could've tutored, worked in a bar, picked up some shifts as Asda.... no one forced her into sex work.

If you can't see why a primary school teacher shouldn't do sex work then there's something wrong with you. It's not about morals or pearl clutching, it's about safe guarding.

I'm afraid I can't see her as the victim here. Women have agency, and she's a uni-educated woman with a secure job and salary at least 35k, don't tell me you can't make ends meet on that. You can.

We all got lonely during lockdown and our mental health took a hit. We didn't all get our boobs out online for money.

If you teach children you don't sell sex, FFS get a grip people, it's not rocket science.

Right. Or a pervert teacher at her work. That pervert who reported her has gotten off scott free while ruining her life. That's what pisses me off.

Is she a pervert? She's posted pictures of herself having sex and has chosen to have sex for cash.

If she's looking for sex with people who may not have consented, then yes, she's a pervert.

Honestly, she should have hidden her face. More people than you care to acknowledge do these activities and a majority are in professions such as teaching, nursing etc.

If you don't identify yourself too much, most people stay under the radar. I do feel extremely sorry for her.

Forced? Hardly. It was her choice, she had other options.

Apart from that, if you want a hooker (to be polite) to teach your children, go ahead and employ her.

The teacher signed a contract when she started work, stating that she wouldn't do anything that may bring the profession into disrepute.

All jobs have clear contracts

Why are some previous posters so confident that there will be a clause in her contract that she’s breaking? I’ve worked in teaching jobs without a written contract at all, although one has been implied.

Look here.

I don’t disagree that she was acting appropriately, I’m just not comfortable with some of the statements above.

Here’s a link to the actual decision.

Yes, this is part of something we had to sign every year.

Staff were hauled in for slagging each other off on SM. It brings the school into disrepute. I don’t want my kid taught by someone who is on Only Fans.

You don't need a contract, the majority of teachers have to comply with the Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA) regarding professional misconduct.

I don't see this as a feminist issue at all. This is one person who made an almighty bad choice and is now facing the consequences of that choice. And let's be clear, this was definitely a choice. She wasn't destitute and "loneliness" doesn't usually lead to selling your tits on the internet.

She was being an appalling role model for her pupils! Hey girls when you grow up you can earn lots of money selling your body just like me! Fgs. No sympathy for her. As others have said her only options aren't now sex work, that's a choice. She's presumably not being forced to do it like a lot in the sex industry. It's not sexist because I would expect a male teacher to be treated exactly the same. Your argument about it disproportionately affecting women doesn't stand. She had a good job being paid equal pay to men.

@cupcaske123

You don't need a contract, the majority of teachers have to comply with the Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA) regarding professional misconduct.

I completely agree, and that’s why the TRA panel has banned her.

My post was wondering about previous posters’ posts saying that all jobs had clear contracts or that she had a clause in her contract which she was breaking

Teachers have to abide by a code of conduct and cannot bring the profession into disrepute. This will apply to other professions such as lawyers and police for example. This will be implied when taking the position, irrespective of what's written into the contract.

This teacher knew that she was breaking that code of conduct by posting explicit photos and advertising sexual services.

I wonder how many people would be finding excuses for a male primary school teacher who was selling sexual services while teaching their six year old.

I’m not disagreeing with any of that, and definitely not that she shouldn’t be teaching.

My issue is with posters saying that all jobs have clear contracts or that the contract will say she shouldn’t bring the profession into disrepute.

It’s an implied term anyway.

However, that’s not the OP’s point.

A prostitute teaching a class of children is not practical or ethical.

So, the characterisation of this woman as a prostitute overrides everything else?

Yeah in teaching it does. It’s safeguarding for a start.

Do l want my kid being taught by a prostitute ( male or female)? No not really.

If you read the actual hearing report, her being a sex worker is not the problem , the main concern was that it was 'at least possible' for pupils to come across footage of her having sex on the Internet.
It is not discrimination because a man who posted similar footage of himself would be treated the same

Fair enough arse. Would it make any difference if the teacher was simply promiscuous?

This.

Interesting thread. I'm giving off on another thread about how a young woman who bared her nipple being pursued by police is disproportionate and creepy on the police force's behalf.

Yet I can't help but think this is a step too far for a teacher to have videos of her engaged in paid for sex available online. I wish society was more liberal, but men and boys are incapable of reasoning when it comes to sex.

Also, it seems she accepted that she was guilty of professional misconduct. She should have tried to defend it if she felt her contract (or lack thereof) wasn't being breached.

What is interesting is how work life and private life are merging into one these days. One of the allegations was that she posted inappropriate images of herself on the internet. That sounds dangerously vague to me. Is a Facebook photo of me looking very drunk inappropriate enough to get me sacked from a teaching job? What about attending a pro-Israel march? Or a video of me baring a breast in public and giving my nipple a good shake?!

Teachers have been sacked in the US for drinking on FB.

Yeah, quite a lot as long as she kept it private.

It’s the fact that it was available and quite easy to access that is the issue. Out in the public domain isn’t something the average parent wants to see.