Sex work sits at the intersection of some of the most fundamental questions in labor governance, namely what counts as work, who should be protected, and what does protection really mean? In today's episode, Cristina walks us through the politics of sex work regulation by comparing two key regulatory models: Sweden's "Nordic model" and New Zealand's decriminalization model. She traces how each plays out in practice, including the harms the Nordic model has created for sex workers, alongside the largely successful protections New Zealand's model has brought about. At the same time, our discussion suggests that neither framework was designed to handle the rise of digital sex work and the geopolitical complexity of platforms as a medium for it. The episode leaves us asking: What can we learn when centering workers’ perspectives in designing labor law? And what happens when we fail to do that? Sources Bundeskunsthalle. “Sex Work.” Accessed April 6, 2026. https://www.bundeskunsthalle.de/s3xwork. Cole, Samantha. “Sweden Expands Anti-Sex Work Law to Criminalize Paying for Custom OnlyFans Clips and Camming.” 404 Media, May 21, 2025. https://www.404media.co/sweden-sex-work-internet-law-nordic-model/. Cooper, Emily, Laura Graham, Lynzi Armstrong, Martin Zebracki, and Paul Maginn, eds. Navigating Contemporary Sex Work: Gender, Justice, and Policy in the Twenty-First Century. Palgrave Advances in Sex Work Studies. Springer Nature, 2024. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-97-6859-2. De Gioannis, Elena, Niccolò Casnici, and Elia Sigala. “Online Sex Work and Subscription-Based Digital Platforms: A Scoping Review.” Journal of Sex Research 63, no. 2 (2026): 206–17. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2025.2454989. Fairwork. Platform Sex Work: Working Conditions in the Online Sex Work Industry. n.d. Global Network of Sex Work Projects. “Let’s Talk about Sex Work: A Terminology Statement and Guide.” n.d. Madden-Smith, Zoe. “From horny colonisers to online censorship: NZ’s history of sex work.” Accessed April 8, 2026. https://tvnz-trial.shorthandstories.com/from-horny-colonisers-to-online-censorship-nzs-history-of-sex-work/. Newshub. From Stigma to the Internet: How Has Sex Work in NZ Changed 20 Years since Decriminalisation? | AM. 2023. 06:54. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XF17ApVi3oU. Schäfer, Fabian. “Sexarbeit hat es immer gegeben – und sie wird nicht verschwinden.” queer.de. Accessed April 6, 2026. https://www.queer.de/detail.php?article_id=57463. “Sex Workers in Europe: Belgium Passes Groundbreaking Legislation, EU Remains Divided.” Gender Issues. Https://Voxeurop.Eu/En/, n.d. Accessed April 6, 2026. https://voxeurop.eu/en/sex-workers-europe-belgium-legislation/. swannetwork. A Swedish Sexworker on the Criminalization of Clients. 2009. 09:57. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7D7nOh57-I8. TED. The Laws That Sex Workers Really Want | Juno Mac. 2016. 17:51. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vc-n852sv3E. Vuolajärvi, Niina. “Governing in the Name of Caring—the Nordic Model of Prostitution and Its Punitive Consequences for Migrants Who Sell Sex.” Sexuality Research and Social Policy 16, no. 2 (2019): 151–65. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13178-018-0338-9. “What Are My Rights as a Sex Worker? | Citizens Advice Bureau.” Accessed April 4, 2026. https://www.cab.org.nz/article/KB00042881. “What are my rights as an employee and what can I do if my employer is not respecting my rights?” March 2, 2026. https://www.cab.org.nz/article/KB00044027.
