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Californian Safety Board Rejects Enforced Condom Use For Porn Workers

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The Occupational Safety and Health’s Standard Board for the state of California (Cal/OSHA) has rejected an enforcement of condom use within the porn industry. The Aids Healthcare Foundation (AHF) has pushed for the standards of workplace safety for a number of years successfully implementing the use of condoms while filming sex scenes in Los Angeles County. However, they were unsuccessful in the Californian hearing on Thursday.

Representatives of the industry in California including actors, directors and producers, gathered to express their opposition to the safety rules suggesting that enforcing these laws will have huge negative implications for the porn business as a whole, due to the fact that people will be put off watching porn films if condoms are visually used. During the public hearing, many explained their reasons for rejecting the regulations. According to the SF Chronicle, dozens of porn industry representatives stood up to argue their case against the proposed ruling. Maxine Holloway, a porn actress said,

I ask you not to approve this policy that will endanger me and my colleagues

The porn industry is not against implementing safety procedures. They currently demand all active porn workers to be tested for sexually transmitted diseases every 14 days and a further worry would be that these current procedures would become obsolete if the use of condoms were to be enforced. But Adam Cohen, a consultant with the AHF told NPR,

Testing is not prevention. Taking an STD test to prevent an STD is like taking a pregnancy test to prevent pregnancy. Testing, and condoms, is the best form of prevention.

Even though these measures are in place, a high number of porn workers have contracted STDs and several have been infected by HIV which only points towards the need for more rigid safety implementation.

Despite their disappointment, the AHF is pleased that the adult film industry is keen to promote safety for their workers and hopes to be able to work closely with porn representatives in tackling the issue in the future.

The SF Chronicle reports that an AHF-affiliated statewide ballot is set for November.

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