2020 presidential hopeful Jay Inslee signs bill protecting strippers

One stripper involved with lobbying for HB 1756, says 'we're just doing our jobs and trying to make a living'

(Getty Images)

Jay Inslee, Washington governor and 2020 Democratic presidential hopeful, has signed a bill granting strip club employees workplace protections in his state.

HB 1756 gives strip club employees workplace protections tailored to their on the job needs.

The bill awards protections such as keeping out abusive customers via blacklists, requiring know-your-rights training, education for the dancers, and installing panic buttons in private rooms.

HB 1756 was lobbied by strippers, like Amber, who told the Seattle Post-Intelligencer: “We’re just doing our jobs and trying to make a living for ourselves and our families. We shouldn’t have to deal with assault on a regular basis because of insufficient security measures.”

She continued: “Strippers are workers and we deserve the same safety and security measures that other kinds of workers enjoy.”

Working Washington, a state workers rights initiative who helped organise this for HB 1756 said: “This bill signing might very well mark a first in Washington state legislative history, the first law affecting people who work at strip clubs that was actually initiated by people who work in strip clubs.”

The signing of HB 1756 was overshadowed by other bills signed into law that day, including a ban on fracking, and protection for the Puget Sound whales.