413047-Underground-Commercial-Sex-Economy

it. In one house, one guy had 13 girls. Tell them I can change their situation, change how
they feel about themselves. Working for a man can feel belittling. Working for a woman is
more like a partnership, you know the emotional baggage, and you connect. You think
about what you’ve been through as a woman. Lies men always told us are lies men are
telling us to get their money. (H8)
Female employees also played an essential role in training new employees regarding business practices:
“If a new female came along, I had other females to prep them and let them know what was going on”
(A7). The support of employees allowed pimps to take a hands-off approach, particularly when attempting
to engage individuals who were already selling sex independently or with another pimp. A respondent
reported, “I would see a ho on the track and I would say ‘What’s up How you charge I’m just trying to
[have sex].’ And she would say, ‘I charge $80.’ And then boom, I take them to the house, and I burn off, I
leave, and my hos talk. And then they like ‘Daddy, she’s ready.’” (D13). Another respondent reported a
near identical process: “So I pick them up … and drop them off to the girls I already have. By the time I
come home—two or three hours later—they were all set, knew the rules” (A3).
Choosing Fees
While not frequently reported, some respondents explained that women had to pay a fee when they
entered a relationship with a pimp. This fee varied. As one pimp explained, “A woman has to choose me,
say she wants me to be her man. And she has to prove she wants to be with me by paying a choosing fee.
[The fee] ranges from $500 to sky’s the limit. Someone might have $10,000, $15,000. There are others
that might not have no money, but they’re running from a bad situation and trying to better themselves. I
might accept her” (G7). While the fee amount may not have been strictly enforced, some pimps
nevertheless felt it was a critical step. A respondent stated, “The girl has a choosing fee. She pays me to get
into my household” (D18). While the quotes above indicate that the practice occurs, findings from
respondent interviews suggest that the exchange of money is not essential to establish a business
relationship between a pimp and sex worker.
Summary of Employee Recruitment
In sum, pimps employed different recruitment tactics to grow their businesses and did so in multiple
contexts, sometimes targeting specific women in particular locations. A pimp’s reputation was essential to
attract employees that expressed willingness to engage in sex work. Recruitment tactics also relied on
manipulation and exploitation of vulnerabilities, and pimps reported misleading women or exaggerating
their romantic interest to initially attract prospective employees. Female employees often played an active
role in recruiting new employees by boosting a pimp’s reputation or making the initial contact with the
recruit. Once employees were recruited, pimps employed similar tactics to maintain control over their
employees’ activities and earnings.
Management of Work Relationships
Research on pimps and the individuals who work for them has shown that the relationship between the
two parties can be coercive, violent, and antagonistic (Norton-Hawk 2004; Raphael and Shapiro 2004;
Raymond et al. 2001). Extant research has indicated that targeting individuals who are economically or
emotionally weak often allows pimps to exploit these dependencies as a means of control (Raymond et al.
2001).
Respondents in this study emphasized the use of manipulation, emotional abuse, exploitation of
vulnerabilities, and encouragement of dependency as methods to maintain control and management over
their businesses. While only 15 percent of respondents admitted the use of violence, previous studies with
pimp-managed sex workers indicated the use of violence as a punishment or threat toward sex workers
who violate their rules (Williamson and Cluse-Tolar 2002). Ultimately, pimps have a significant degree of
power when it comes to controlling their workers through threats and intimidation, financial exploitation,
and physical abuse. Respondents to this study managed work relationships by creating rules, imposing
different forms of discipline when rules were violated, and encouraging competition between employees.
These common practices of control are considered below.
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