Sex Workers Already Predicted There's A Recession Coming — Here's How They Know

822 points by huffpost 9 months ago on reddit | 59 comments

[OP] huffpost | 9 months ago

From reporter Jamie Davis Smith:

While some people anxiously watch the stock market for signs of a recession, others look for more subtle cues that the economy is in trouble.

One of them is Catherine De Noire, a manager of a legal brothel, a Ph.D. candidate in organizational psychology and an influencer. When business at her brothel unexpectedly dips, De Noire takes it as a sign that the economy is in trouble.

According to De Noire, business at her brothel usually picks up in the spring once people give up on their New Year’s resolutions and recover from holiday spending. But this year, business is down.

“There are significantly fewer clients coming in, and the sex workers are reporting noticeably lower earnings,” she said.

Link to the full article: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/a-recession-is-coming-sex-workers_l_67eaa67fe4b008c5a2ecc0bc?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=reddit&utm_campaign=us_main

Bored2001 | 9 months ago

ah, a Brothel House index to compliment the Waffle House index

aelysium | 9 months ago

The Hot Waitress Index: https://nymag.com/news/intelligencer/58195/

Wine_runner | 9 months ago

Don't forget Big Mac Index.

Rhenjamin | 9 months ago

I use the broken down car index. Record how many cars are on the side of the road compared to the miles in your direction of travel.

elperroborrachotoo | 9 months ago

GammaFan | 9 months ago

Brothels and waffles are a great way to keep tabs on the economy.

Wheream_I | 9 months ago

The brothel house is just a new version of the stripper index.

chanaandeler_bong | 9 months ago

>no hookers this year, guys

dreaming_of_beaches | 9 months ago

My hairdresser is always the first one to let me know that there’s gonna be a downturn in the economy. She can tell by the habits of her clients.

RubyRhod | 9 months ago

Same. My barber said that he’s getting like 60% less bookings.

mhyquel | 9 months ago

It's a recession hairline.

GildedCleric | 9 months ago

Ba dum tss!

Riptide360 | 9 months ago

Orange mop Trump hairstyle better not catch on.

sifuredit | 9 months ago

It was a rigged erection

sharksnack3264 | 9 months ago

Same. I had a long chat with mine a couple weeks ago when I went in for a trim. Aside from foot traffic in her shop she talks to a lot of people from all walks of life. Outlook not good.

TheSonofDon | 9 months ago

My girlfriend cuts my hair and she hasn’t taken my calls in weeks. Is that a sign of a bad economy?

Jokkers_AceS | 9 months ago

You probably need a new gf.

ckFuNice | 9 months ago

Same as my Aunt. She's a barber in a convent.

milkisgood1 | 9 months ago

I work in events and am currently having the slowest March and April that I can remember in the 10 years I’ve been in the industry. An older lady had told me about events indicating how the economy was doing years ago.

bokalbo | 9 months ago

how were you during covid

milkisgood1 | 9 months ago

Essentially furloughed on and off for 2 years. Luckily my company continued to pay my health insurance, guaranteed my job back, and let me collect unemployment. I was extremely lucky.

We had a 400 person lunch and 600 person dinner when the world shut down. There was 30% attendance for the lunch, the dinner was cancelled and no one was back to work for almost a year.

plassteel01 | 9 months ago

One thing I learned when I was active duty was if I really wanted to know what was going on, I would ask a sex worker. Command wouldn't tell us the straight story, but sex wokers always do, and this goes from the gals that work by the 15 minutes to the ones that work by the day.

akath0110 | 9 months ago

People tend to get chatty when alcohol, drugs, and/or pillow talk are involved

plassteel01 | 9 months ago

A thought that I never thought to ask is how they got that information. I know we were cautioned about spilling the beans, so to speak, but that was always for us enlisted, but officers, man, they were always blabbing more so captain's and command more so

akath0110 | 9 months ago

If they’re savvy (and most successful SWers are) they wouldn’t disclose their sources anyway. Bad for business — and also, you know, staying alive

plassteel01 | 9 months ago

Yea, the thought never crossed my mind. I was getting the service I wanted and was perfectly happy with that.

Publius82 | 9 months ago

As prior enlisted myself, I thought that's pretty much all officers do

Back when there were newspaper boys, I could tell the economy was headed for trouble when I started seeing very old and very young ones.

pluralofjackinthebox | 9 months ago

In the sopranos, when Tony asks Silvio “What two businesses have historically been recession proof, since time immemorial?” And Silvio responds: “Certain aspects of show business, and our thing.” I always assumed this would include prostitution.

llandar | 9 months ago

You thought Sil and Tony were prostitutes?

KarateFriendship | 9 months ago

They were gay, Sil and Tony?

llandar | 9 months ago

Catching? Not pitching?

Mecco | 9 months ago

With this knowledge, you will find new things rewatching the show.

wanderinggoat | 9 months ago

baddabing!

Teantis | 9 months ago

Maybe for the industry overall it's kind of okay, but from the pov of an individual sex worker a recession throws more competition in, even if demand doesn't dip - which it likely does at least a little.

Koolklink54 | 9 months ago

The guy working the Hotdog cart I go to has been saying the same thing

samueltoinfinity | 9 months ago

I call it talking about the indexes. Once you start seeing people talking about different kinds of indexes you know we are headed into a recession.

In good times people forget about indexes!

donquixote2000 | 9 months ago

I guess they're seeing less of Trump.

TheEverchooser | 9 months ago

Rapists don't pay for sex.

donquixote2000 | 9 months ago

Good point.

Bryanthomas44 | 9 months ago

Stormy Daniel said there’s not much to see of Trump. Just a little tiny mushroom.

LOCKHIMUP2025 | 9 months ago

Because Republicans are taking over and sex workers are not young boys.

DataCassette | 9 months ago

Actual audible laugh on that one lol

eliminating_coasts | 9 months ago

Even if it's just fear, and means that people are saving more rather than actually losing income, it probably signifies anti-inflationary pressure.

I wouldn't be surprised if we see the EU hit its inflation target within the next few months.

pegothejerk | 9 months ago

A famous EU economist explained recently that the US market indicators show the exact same signs the UK had when their middle class effectively disappeared. First they could blame recessions for a lack of spending, and it would recover, and then one day it was because all the money had been sucked up by the ultra wealthy, and policy had removed the ability to move any back to the middle class, so it never returned. He says the same situation seems to be happening now in the US. It might be a recession that never really recovers until there’s the political appetite to move money back into the middle class.

Scope_Dog | 9 months ago

Pussy or rent? Hmm.

No_Spring_1090 | 9 months ago

That was my band’s name in high school

vgeno24 | 9 months ago

It’s called the Stripper Index. More info in the link.The Stripper Index

Khanabhishek | 9 months ago

Is this USA only?

Olealicat | 9 months ago

They’re fucking the president and he leaks like a wet butthole.

kang4president | 9 months ago

I've been hearing tattoo artists talking about it too

Ello_Owu | 9 months ago

And if shit bottoms out, everyone will be turning tricks. When more people are hooking, then you'll know we're in big trouble.

heelspider | 9 months ago

Maybe strippers are making less because everyone is on OnlyFans.

JamieMist | 9 months ago

Profits must be sagging?

tsunamiforyou | 9 months ago

These cheeks won’t clap themselves

No_Spring_1090 | 9 months ago

Carie in a Coal Mine