A unionization effort among sex workers at a brothel in Nevada is an indication that the Silver State's model for legal prostitution isn't exactly perfect. 

Then again, the fact that such discussions are even possible indicates that the state's regulatory framework for sex work is significantly more enlightened than elsewhere in the nation. After all, in most other states, consenting adults who engage in such commercial sexual activity are generally arrested rather than given the opportunity to collectively demand better working conditions from their "employers." 

The working dynamics of Nevada's brothels certainly aren't entirely free from exploitation or abuse. However, Nevada has long been a pioneer in legalizing the world's oldest profession with an eye toward making the industry safer than what exists on the streets and alleyways of cities where prohibitionist policies turn desperate or trafficked women into criminals. 

And, truth be told, the state's unique approach to sex work has managed to provide women with agency, legal protections and the sort of regulatory support that simply doesn't exist where such activity is banned outright — ongoing concerns about fairness and employment conditions notwithstanding. 

Indeed, a prohibitionist approach to sex work is increasingly being seen by major advocacy groups as a failed model — a model that not only fails to stop the abusive and criminal elements of human trafficking but also deprives those who are willingly in the industry of the ability to improve their circumstances. 

Just as alcohol prohibition ultimately did little more than enrich violent gangs and organized crime in the early 20th century (rather than purge the public of recreational drinking), the prohibition of consensual sex work simply drives business to the pimps, traffickers and criminals who profit from the exploitation of young women. And in today's world of online access and digital solicitation, the black market is even more accessible and robust than before. 

Laws that punish consenting adults for commercial sexual behavior that we find uncouth might seem like an ethical and moral pursuit, but in truth it only exacerbates the power of criminals, traffickers and abusers by driving the marketplace underground. 

No wonder many jurisdictions have started experimenting with small steps toward Nevada's model of legalization. 

In Colorado, for example, lawmakers are weighing the possibility of decriminalizing prostitution statewide. While lawmakers are certainly not prepared to go as far as creating Nevada-style regulatory frameworks for brothels to operate legally, there nonetheless seems to be a willingness among a sizeable portion of the state's Legislature to admit that the old-fashioned model of criminalizing commercial sexual acts has failed as a method to curb sexual exploitation.  

Although it goes further than most other states, Colorado's current proposal wouldn't be the first to flirt with such decriminalization efforts. In 2023, Maine passed a similar law that eliminates penalties for "engaging in prostitution." Under that state's relaxation of prostitution laws, it remains a crime for anyone to engage in vaguely defined "commercial sexual exploitation" or directly purchase sex. Nonetheless, it was still a notable step toward alleviating the sort of legal prejudice traditionally levied against workers who consensually agree to take part in such an industry. 

Indeed, it's a step that many countries and even a few states have attempted to adopt over the years in one form or another as the "Nordic model." Under such partial legalization models, the act of purchasing sex remains illegal while the direct act of selling sex is decriminalized in an attempt to give women and workers the legal support needed to seek help from authorities if needed. 

However, such partial legalization unfortunately maintains much of the criminalization framework that drives such work underground in the first place. As a result, the illicit markets run by criminals, traffickers and pimps continue to thrive — and many of the workers operating in such systems have no agency to legally fight back against unfair or abusive practices from their clients or their supposed "employers." 

More importantly, the Nordic model has the same failures as most prohibitionist policies: It treats all sex work as inherently exploitative and refuses to acknowledge the individual and bodily autonomy of those who willingly and knowingly engage in such work of their own volition.  

Nevada's legalization model, on the other hand, allows individuals who consensually work at legal brothels the legitimacy needed to advocate for their own well-being — including the right to fight for better working conditions. 

That's a freedom that sex workers who are "employed" by a trafficker in an illegal market undoubtedly lack — and it's the reason a unionization fight at a brothel in Pahrump should be seen as unequivocal evidence that Nevada's approach to the industry prioritizes the welfare of the women who choose to engage in such work. 

Morally and ethically, that's a much better system than one that "rescues" women from supposed sexual exploitation by criminalizing their actions and throwing them in jail. 

Michael Schaus is a communications and branding expert based in Las Vegas and founder of Schaus Creative LLC, an agency dedicated to helping organizations, businesses and activists tell their story and motivate change. He has more than a decade of experience in public affairs commentary, having worked as a news director, columnist, political humorist and most recently as the director of communications for a public policy think tank. Follow him on Twitter @schausmichaelor on Substack @creativediscourse.