The following was developed in 2024 to ensure people wishing to engage our community understand what is expected.

ETHICS STATEMENT

BCCEC 2024

For thousands of years, the Coast Salish peoples have flourished in the land that is now Vancouver. We honour the three great Nations whose land this is: Squamish Nation, Musqueam Nation and Tsleil-Waututh Nation. We are so grateful to be guests on this land.

Who We Are

The BCCEC are a democratic organization of sex workers from diverse race, gender and genres in sex work in the BC Region. Our work focuses on law and policy reform being based on evidence and fact and on placing the voices of sex workers at the centre of all work that could impact our lives and safety.

Background

BCCEC Members first learned about research ethics during the Policy Project – 2003 – BCCEC. Dr. Lowman and Dr. Palys, 2 of the authors of the Tri-Council Policy Statement, explained to sex workers why these policies were important to ensuring the most complete outcomes of any research or consultation with our community.

The BCCEC have employed the principles outlined in the TCPS and now the TCPS2 since our inception in every action we have taken.

Sex workers are among the most marginalized people in Canada and face societal exclusion, deep stigma and criminalization. Intersections with other traditionally excluded communities create an environment where biased and unethical research has shaped policy and public perception for decades.

The following statement reflects the Research Ethics; A Guide for Community Organizations – 2006 document, the practice of the BCCEC and expectations of any researcher or group who wish to engage with our membership;

Code of Conduct

All experiences and knowledge will be respected. There are no wrong answers or unimportant contributions.

All non sex working people who engage with the BCCEC Membership must be committed to respecting sex workers experiences at all times.

Challenging whether an experience is true, belittling or judging sex workers for their experiences or any other demeaning behaviour will not be tolerated and will lead to the end of the consultation, engagement or research with BCCEC Members.

Appropriate Inclusion/ Inappropriate Exclusion

All efforts will be made to ensure a broad and diverse cross section of the sex working community across gender, ethnicity and location in the sex industry are appropriately included in development of any consultation, engagements or research from the beginning.

Any proposed actions must be directed by and centre the experiences of the people who will be impacted by any outcomes, sex workers.

Where ever possible sex workers should be included in development of the idea or plan for any consultation, engagement or research.

Where sex workers lived experiences intersect with other risks, their experiences will be a priority;

• Sex workers who are Indigenous must be a priority.

• Sex workers who are racialized must be a priority.

• Sex workers who are im/migrants must be a priority.

• Sex workers who are gender diverse must be a priority.

• Sex workers whose experiences include exploitation or violence must be a priority.

Culturally Appropriate Supports

When appropriate, cultural supports will be offered to any participants who need them.

These supports should take into account the culture of the sex worker(s) taking part.

Informed Consent

The purpose of the consultation, engagement or research must be clearly outlined in language which is easy to understand.

What the findings of the consultation, engagement or research will be used for must be included in this outline.

It must be clear that participants are free to end their participation at any time if they feel uncomfortable.

This must be in the form of a document which all parties agree to and sign in acknowledgement.

Honorarium

Honorarium for contributions of knowledge, experience and time must be offered to ensure the value of sex workers lived experiences are acknowledged.

Honorarium is also a harm reduction strategy. Consultations, engagements and research involving sex workers often features difficult conversations about the violence and discrimination we face. Paying an honorarium of a reasonable amount can ensure sex workers are not left feeling triggered or emotional without the means to take the time to recover.

The honorarium must be paid at the beginning of the consultation, engagement or research interview to ensure consent is not compromised and that participants are free to end their participation at any time if they wish.

Honorarium reporting must be confidential. Participants who receive government benefits as income face risk of loss of a portion of their income if any outside income is reported.

Confidentiality

The BCCEC adhere to the principles set out in the Wigmore Criteria. Confidentiality is a critical feature of research or engagement involving criminalized populations.

Expectations for confidentiality must be clearly stated and outlined in a document which all parties agree to and sign in acknowledgement including;

• Who owns or is in charge of the data

• What kind of data will be collected and for what purpose

• Where and how any data collected will be stored

• How long any data will be stored

• When and how will the data be destroyed

Risks, Benefits and Review

The BCCEC works with individuals involved in sex work and in survival sex. Currently, activities associated with participation in sexual exchange are criminalized. For our organization, in keeping with our mandate, ethical review of research projects is essential however not always possible. As a community organization receiving government grants, we are often required to conduct project evaluation with our populations. Where ethical review is not possible, BCCEC in partnership with academic researchers and sex workers endeavour to conduct our own review to ensure that the benefits of research/evaluation outweigh the risks to individual participants or to sex workers as a social grouping.

Any consultation, engagement or research must have a benefit to the sex working community which is tangible and explained as part of informed consent.