German prostitutes get new rights
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German lawmakers have approved new rules intended to improve the lot of Germany’s 400,000 prostitutes, removing what the government sees as discrimination in the fields of health care, pensions and life insurance. Germany’s Women and Families Ministry estimates that turnover from bars, clubs and brothels connected to prostitution is in the region of $4.5bn per year. But while some prostitutes actually pay tax on some of that money, sex workers have routinely been denied access to state health insurance and pension schemes. In the past, most prostitutes were forced to register as housewives in order to qualify for these schemes, and that will now change. More : news.bbc.co.uk |