Is offering tuition reimbursement to strippers enterprising or crossing the line?
On a warm July 4 morning, Human Resources Minister Diane Finley and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney jointly announced that commencing July 14, the Canadian government would no longer process Visas for immigrants seeking employment in the sex industry.
It’s difficult to argue the logic that went into this decision. One can hardly go a day or two without reading a story or watching a news report about another case of human trafficking. Women, young boys and girls from many countries (often Asia, Central and South America) are stolen or coerced with false promises and then turned into prostitutes, strippers, escorts, etc. No human should ever be forced into providing sex, and yet it happens every day all over the world – even in Canada. This move, the ministers hope, will curb this activity in Canada.
A ruling that went unnoticed by most of us, has had a crippling affect on the owners of massage parlours, strip joints and those who provide escorts. Without the ability to renew existing visas or process new ones for lack of a better term, to import more women from other countries to fill turnover, businesses are now faced with the dilemma of being unable to provide enough women to service their clientele.
It is difficult to say whether the foreign women who until now provided these services had been promised anything more than employment. My gut says probably not. However, this ruling has had no effect on one strip club owner, who for more than ten years has been hiring Canadian women for his two strip joints. He has quite an enticement to lure them in.
Rob Katzman, who owns two strip clubs in Windsor, Leopard’s Lounge and Broil and Cheetah’s of Windsor has no problem filling a void. In fact, he says in light of this ruling, he’ll beef up his adverts. I haven’t seen one, but his help wanted adverts could easily read something like this:
Wanted: Hot women needed to strip in well-established Windsor gentlemen’s club. No experience necessary. Pay estimated at $1500 a week. College students welcome. As an added bonus, I’ll reimburse you up to $1700 per college semester, provided you maintain a B average or better.
What do you think about this? Do you think his tuition reimbursement incentive entices women who might not otherwise consider stripping? Do you think it is degrading to Canadian women to offer an enticement? And do you think his idea will catch on with the other strip club owners, and businesses who offer escort services?
While I was doing research on this topic, I came across an article that enlightened readers to five things we may not have known about strippers. One had to do with Sweden, and therefore it isn’t relevant, but four related to strippers in Canada and they surprised me.
- Strippers make as much as many attorneys.
- Contrary to what I always assumed about strippers being miserable in their jobs and feeling subjugated, the majority love what they do. Apparently, most are motivated to strip as a career or for economic reasons, not because off addiction or coercion. I am not so certain I would believe that about the women who are victims of human trafficking.
- A good number of strippers have degrees. Perhaps the enterprising Mr. Katzman may have something to do with this.
- Despite these facts, Canada has a shortage of strippers. Perhaps Katzman’s enticement is intended to catch like wildfire.
What do you think about all of this?
Until next time,
Peace, love and vitamin C!
