A dispute over contracts has given the public a rare glimpse into the employment practices of local strip clubs. The Detail looks into why a group of strippers has decided to fight back after their pay was cut.
A protester addresses the crowd outside Calendar Girls in Wellington. Photo: Supplied. In early February, a group of strippers working at Calendar Girls strip club in Wellington raised issues with club management about their new contracts. The contracts increased the club's share of their earnings leaving the strippers with 50 percent instead of the 60 percent they had received previously.
The group of 19 strippers had their contracts terminated by Calendar Girls management through a Facebook post telling them to clear out their lockers. This group has since formed a campaign under the banner 'Fired Up Stilettos' advocating for better workplace conditions for strippers.
They can be fined for things that are quite arbitrary, like rudeness, swearing, inappropriate behaviour," says Gourley. The picketers danced, held signs and handed out pamphlets to supporters on the street. Green MP Jan Logie attended the protest to hear the strippers' concerns, as well as touring rock'n'roll singer-songwriter Billy Bragg. Vixen Temple, an activist, sex worker and former stripper, says the dispute at Calendar Girls didn't surprise her.
Stripping as an independent contractor offers workers the freedom to pick and choose when and how much they work, Vixen says. But she found that strip clubs in New Zealand often placed demands on workers that went above and beyond their contracts - setting prices for services, requiring strippers to go and purchase uniforms, and maintaining a shift roster. Most strip clubs in New Zealand operate by taking a percentage of strippers' earnings in exchange for providing a venue for the strippers to work in.
