Dunedin strip club manager calls for rethink on fines system

Friday, 18 May 2018

A New Zealand strip club manager says fining workers is entirely unacceptable in a professional context. (File photo)

A Dunedin strip club manager who abolished fines for dancers is calling on the industry to rethink its approach to the practice.

Stilettos general manager Claire Weinhold rejected the idea – put forward by others in management positions – that imposing fines for infringements like lateness or missing a shift was necessary to maintain order.

Calendar Girls in Christchurch is the subject of an employment complaint from the former staff member.

'The idea that the industry needs to be driven by punitive measures is untrue. As with the sex industry in general, my view is that coercion is ethically indefensible.

'I can assure other operators of adult entertainment venues that treating performers with dignity and respect will enhance, not damage, their business.'

* 'Stripping was all I had': Former dancer exposes Calendar Girls' rules and fines**

The practice of fining dancers appears commonplace in New Zealand. Another strip club manager in Queenstown said: 'If there are clubs who say that they don't do it, then they're probably not telling you the truth.'

Weinhold begged to differ. She inherited a system of fines she said was rarely used when she took on the job at Stilettos in October last year. Within weeks, they were gone.

'Imposing penalties doesn't seem a sensible way to treat your business assets, and entirely unacceptable in a professional context.

'It would be like demanding money from your salespeople for wearing a suit you didn't like or being too unwell to make a meeting.'

There had been no issues since ditching the fines system, Weinhold said. It had created a more honest, direct relationship between the dancers and the club, she said.

The debate over fines in strip clubs ignited on Thursday after Stuff reported former Calendar Girls' dancer Jessica Clifford planned to sue the Christchurch strip club, alleging she was unjustifiably dismissed. Calendar Girls 'strongly' denies her allegations.

In response to a request for a contract from Clifford's employment advocate, the club provided a document containing a list of fines, ranging from $50 to missing a spot on stage to $2500 for dancing for a competitor.

Some advocates and former strip club workers called for an end to the practice of issuing fines to dancers, while others defended the system.

Weinhold said Stiletto's dancers were independent contractors bound by a code of conduct and provided with contracts that made it clear they had to pay their own tax. She acknowledged stripping was a unique industry, but said fines were not necessary.

'If business operators cannot function without them, it's probably worth them rethinking their practices,' she said.

'My experience has been that the vast majority of performers are professional and focused. Chaos is not in their interests and it is not something I have seen.'