Editing Lap dance

{{Short description|Type of erotic dance}}
{{About||the song|Lapdance (song)|the film|Lap Dance (film){{!}}''Lap Dance'' (film)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2015}}
[[File:Lapdance demonstration.jpg|thumb|Lap or couch contact dance [[Demonstration (teaching)|demonstration]] at the 2008 [[AVN Adult Entertainment Expo]]]]

A '''lap dance''' (or '''contact dance''') is a type of [[erotic dance]] performance offered in many [[strip club]]s in which the dancer typically has body contact with a seated patron. Lap dancing is different from [[table dance|table dancing]], in which the dancer is close to a seated patron, but without body contact. Variant terms include '''couch dance''', which is a lap dance where the recipient is seated on a [[couch]].

With full-contact lap dances, the dancer may engage in [[non-penetrative sex]]ual contact with the patron, such as "[[Grinding (dance)|grinding]]" or "[[twerking]]" their body against the patron. Depending on the local jurisdiction and [[community standards]], the participants in lap dancing are sometimes allowed to touch or be touched by each other. In some clubs any touching by the patron is forbidden. In others there is no oversight by the club and various levels of contact are negotiable between the participants. Clubs vary widely with regard to their enforcement of rules, and some [[turn a blind eye]] to any violations.

Lap dancing usually occurs with both participants being either clothed to more or less the same degree, or naked, or the dancer being partially or fully naked, depending on the laws of the jurisdiction and the club's policies. Some jurisdictions require a prohibition on alcohol if various degrees of nudity are allowed. In other jurisdictions nudity is only allowed where skin contact does not occur between the dancer and the patron, requiring at least one of them to wear clothing. Where specific licensing exists for an establishment to allow [[prostitution]], the dress requirements may also be dependent on that licensing. As the dancer is rarely dressed to a greater degree than the patron, lap dancing is sometimes seen as a submissive act by the dancer.

In some places, a "block session" of lap dances (usually half an hour to an hour) can be booked in a "[[champagne room]]" or "VIP room", which is a private room usually located in the back of a club. In many clubs, the duration of a lap dance is measured by the length of the song being played by the club's [[DJ]]. Charges for lap dances vary significantly.

==Controversy==
There is some debate as to whether lap dancing is entertainment or a type of [[sex work]].<ref>Einat Albin, [http://m.ilj.oxfordjournals.org/content/42/2/180.short?rss=1 "The Case of Quashie: Between the Legalisation of Sex Work and the Precariousness of Personal Service Work"], ''Industrial Law Journal'', (2013) 42 (2): 180-191. doi: 10.1093/indlaw/dwt006 - Accessed on 12 March 2014</ref> Critics of lap dancing allege that some club owners, by installing dark private booths and charging dancers steep stage fees, are covertly condoning and encouraging the sale of [[Human sexual activity|sexual acts]] between customers and dancers. This can be a concern if, as for instance in the [[United Kingdom]], the club has a [[public entertainment licence]] rather than a [[sex establishment licence]], and in jurisdictions where [[brothel]]s are illegal.<ref>Bindel, Julie, [http://www.glasgow.gov.uk/CHttpHandler.ashx?id=8107& "Profitable Exploits: Lap Dancing in the UK"], Study for the [[Glasgow]] City Council (August 2004)</ref><ref name="sfweekly">{{cite news|url=https://archives.sfweekly.com/sanfrancisco/lap-victory/Content?oid=2153185 |title=Lap Victory: How a DA's decision to drop prostitution charges against lap dancers will change the sexual culture of S.F. – and, perhaps, the country|author-link=David Steinberg (journalist and photographer)|author=David Steinberg|work=SF Weekly|date=8 September 2004}}</ref>

==History and legal issues==
[[File:Main Room.jpg|thumb|upright|Typical area where lap dances are performed in semi-privacy]]

Lap dancing clubs are a later development of earlier [[strip clubs]], where [[stripper]]s danced on stage and were paid a wage. In the 1970s, New York's Melody Theater introduced [[audience participation]] and called it "Mardi Gras".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://cinematreasures.org/news/14002_0_1_0_C/ |title=Harem Theatre in NYC?|work=cinematreasures.org|access-date=11 September 2015}}</ref> The Melody Theater became the Harmony Theater and operated in two locations in [[Manhattan]] for over 20 years until it was closed down in 1998.

Also during the 1970s, adult film makers [[Mitchell brothers|Jim and Artie Mitchell]] had been running an adult movie house, called the [[O'Farrell Theatre]], in San Francisco to feature their films.<ref name="SFW-Steinberg">{{cite web |last=Steinberg |first=David |title=Lap Victory |url=http://www.sfweekly.com/2004-09-08/news/lap-victory/ |work=[[SF Weekly]] |publisher=SF Weekly, LP |access-date=3 April 2014}}</ref> But in the second half of the 1970s, with the invention of the [[videocassette recorder]] and a proliferation of [[video rental shop|video cassette rental stores]], the demand for adult movie theaters began to plummet.<ref name="McCumber1992, p. 78">McCumber(1992), p. 78.</ref> Realizing that they needed a new business model for their building, the Mitchell brothers sent manager Vince Stanich around the country to explore customer-contact shows in [[sex club]]s.<ref name="McCumber1992, p. 78"/> After Stanich reported back, the Mitchell brothers responded in 1977 by opening three new rooms at their O'Farrell Theatre featuring customer-contact shows: The Ultra Room, The Kopenhagen, and New York Live.<ref>McCumber(1992), p. 79.</ref> The Kopenhagen's shows were performed by a pair of naked women in a small room with about twenty men. However the club's most profitable new venue was New York Live, which was a cabaret-style strip club act with women dancing three song sets upon a stage, while usually being totally nude for the final song.<ref>McCumber(1992), p. 79, 155.</ref>

Most of the strippers who were not dancing were sitting naked on customers' laps for tips. The amount of tipping rapidly increased and was then marketed as a "lap dance", and its popularity caused lines of men to regularly appear outside the theater's doors.<ref>McCumber(1992), p. 81, 155</ref> The Mitchells hired new dancers as fast as they could to keep up with demand, and had created another sex-show innovation which gained them international notoriety and generated more money than their film business.<ref>McCumber(1992), p. 80.</ref>

Later in 2004, a San Francisco [[District Attorney]]'s decision to drop prostitution charges against lap dancers in the city changed the sexual culture of San Francisco and "has the potential to influence the policies of other cities".{{Citation needed|date=November 2021}}

In some areas of the U.S. and Canada, local authorities began cracking down on lap dancing after reports that some clubs allowed customers to engage in [[sexual intercourse]] or other [[Human sexual activity|sexual activity]] with dancers during lap dance sessions.<ref name="Ross2009">{{cite book|last=Ross|first=Becki|title=Burlesque West: showgirls, sex, and sin in postwar Vancouver|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=plgceSLzsgAC&pg=PA78 |access-date=24 March 2011|date=October 2009|publisher=University of Toronto Press|isbn=978-0-8020-9646-3|page=78}}</ref> Various strip clubs have wide-ranging rules on how customers should interact with strippers.<ref name="Lap Dance Etiquette">{{cite web|url=http://www.askmen.com/dating/curtsmith_200/230_dating_advice.html |title=Lap Dance Etiquette|access-date=5 March 2013}}</ref>

===Canada===
In 1973, an upmarket [[Vancouver]] bar called "Gary Taylor's Show Lounge" employed [[showgirl]]s and strippers as [[waitress]]es who gave a free dance with every drink. The club was raided by the police under the guise of obscenity legislation, but, in 1974, Judge Jack McGivern ruled that dancer nudity was not [[obscene]], which started a trend of nude dancing in bars. No contact between dancers and patrons was allowed at the club, but Gary Taylor's had a [[boxing ring]] where the girls performed revealing [[acrobatics]] after stripping off and then earned tips. Americans from [[Washington (state)|Washington state]] made the trip to the club from the United States, which at the time had stricter laws.<ref name="Lifestyles: Canada’s Multi-Million Dollar Addiction To Lap-Dancing">{{cite web|url=http://www.pittmeadowstoday.ca/lifestyles-canadas-multi-million-dollar-addiction-to-lap-dancing |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130410032410/http://www.pittmeadowstoday.ca/lifestyles-canadas-multi-million-dollar-addiction-to-lap-dancing |url-status=dead |archive-date=10 April 2013 |title=Lifestyles: Canada's Multi-Million Dollar Addiction To Lap-Dancing|date=21 September 2012|access-date=5 March 2013}}</ref>

In a landmark ruling regarding the 1994 case of Pat Mara and Allan East (the owner and manager of Cheaters Tavern), Judge E. Gordon Hachborn legally defined lap dancing and ruled that it did not contravene Canadian [[Indecent exposure|public decency]] statutes. A number of conflicting judgements were issued in the years that followed, including decisions to close certain bars in which sex acts took place on the floor of the club and other rulings in which patrons were allowed to touch the dancers, as long as an actual sex act did not take place.<ref name="Lifestyles: Canada’s Multi-Million Dollar Addiction To Lap-Dancing" />

In 1999, the [[Supreme Court of Canada]] ruled that a typical lap dance did not constitute an "obscene" act within the meaning of the [[Criminal Code (Canada)|Criminal Code]]. [[The Crown]] did not argue that lap dances constituted "prostitution", and therefore the court did not address the possible issue that the typical lap dance may contravene one or more anti-prostitution laws.<ref>{{citation |url=http://scc.lexum.umontreal.ca/en/1999/1999rcs3-863/1999rcs3-863.html |title=Judgement of the Supreme Court of Canada – Decisions – R. v. Pelletier |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070325070325/http://scc.lexum.umontreal.ca/en/1999/1999rcs3-863/1999rcs3-863.html |date=13 December 1999 |archive-date=25 March 2007 |access-date=20 November 2016 }}</ref> This led to the displacement of strip clubs and [[Table dance|table dancing]] clubs in Canada by lap dancing clubs.

In 2005, two Supreme Court of Canada rulings ([[R. v. Labaye]] and [[R. v. Kouri]]) decriminalized private sex clubs in Canada.

On 20 December 2013, (in [[Bedford v. Canada]]) the Supreme Court of Canada found the laws prohibiting [[brothels]], public communication for the purpose of prostitution, and living on the profits of prostitution to be unconstitutional. The ruling gave the [[Parliament of Canada|Canadian parliament]] twelve months to rewrite Canada's prostitution laws; in the meantime, existing anti-prostitution laws continued to be enforced.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-25468587 |title=Canada Supreme Court strikes down prostitution laws|publisher=BBC|date=20 December 2013|access-date=8 January 2014}}</ref> Current laws on [[prostitution in Canada]], introduced in 2014, make it illegal to purchase sexual services (including lap dancing) but legal to sell them.<ref name=GCDJ>{{cite web|url=http://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/rp-pr/other-autre/protect/p1.html |title=Technical Paper: Bill C-36, Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act|author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.-->|date= December 2014|website=justice.gc.ca|publisher=Government of Canada: Department of Justice|access-date=13 September 2015|quote=Bill C-36 criminalizes, for the first time in Canadian criminal law, the purchase of sexual services… The following activities have been found to constitute a sexual service or an act of prostitution, if provided in return for some form of consideration: lap-dancing, which involves sitting in the client’s lap and simulating sexual intercourse… Bill C-36 does not prevent those who sell their own sexual services from entering into legitimate family and business relationships…}}</ref>

===Ireland===
In the early 2000s, lap dancing expanded rapidly in the [[Republic of Ireland]], building on an existing [[strip pub]] industry. A number of lap-dancing clubs were opened in Dublin, including one by the English nightclub owner [[Peter Stringfellow]]. Lap-dancing clubs were also opened across the country.  Many of Ireland's lap-dancing clubs have subsequently closed as a result of the worsened economic climate and changes to Ireland's licensing laws in 2008. Reputational issues have also played a part in the decline of Ireland's lap-dancing clubs.

Police raids took place on Irish lap-dancing clubs in 2003 in search of criminal activity as part of [[Operation Quest]]. Efforts to distance Irish lap dancing from the [[sex industry]] were hampered by the UK's decision in 2010 to classify its lap dancing clubs as sex establishments. Ireland's lap-dancing clubs became viewed as more expensive than their rivals overseas and more restricted in terms of the entertainment on offer. By 2012 there were five or six clubs operating in Dublin, one in Galway and one in Cork. Most lap-dancing clubs in Ireland operate a no-touching rule, and typically do not charge dancers a "house fee" to perform, instead taking a proportion of the dancer's earnings.<ref>{{cite news|title=Life as a lap dancer|url=https://www.independent.ie/style/sex-relationships/life-as-a-lap-dancer-28891041.html|newspaper=Independent.ie|location=Ireland|date=7 October 2012|author=Catherine Murphy|access-date=14 March 2018}}</ref>

===United Kingdom===
The first lap dancing club in the UK was opened in 1995.<ref name=Memo>{{cite web |url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200809/cmselect/cmcumeds/492/8112507.htm |title=Memorandum submitted by The Lap Dancing Association (LDA): The Real Body of Evidence |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=November 2008 |website=www.parliament.uk |publisher=UK Parliament |access-date=21 September 2015 }}</ref> During the 2000s the lap dancing industry grew quickly,<ref name=Cooke>{{cite news|last=Cooke|first=Rachel|date=8 March 2009|title=Should lap dancing be run out of town?|url=https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2009/mar/08/sex-industry-lap-dancing |newspaper=The Observer|access-date=10 September 2015}}</ref> with the [[Licensing Act 2003]] as the only legislation in England and Wales regulating lap dancing clubs.<ref name=Memo/> The [[Lap Dancing Association]] (LDA), a [[trade association]] for the UK lap dancing industry, was formed in 2006<ref>{{cite web|title=Who We Are|url=http://www.ldauk.org.uk:80/Who-We-Are_pg2.aspx|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100409061408/http://www.ldauk.org.uk/Who-We-Are_pg2.aspx|archive-date=9 April 2010|website=Lap Dancing Association|url-status=dead}}</ref> and officially launched in 2008.<ref name=regulation>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2008/apr/28/3|date=28 April 2008| title=Lap dance firms call for tighter regulation|author=Paul Lewis|newspaper=The Guardian|access-date=1 September 2015}}</ref> It operated a code of practice for its members.<ref>{{cite web|title=Code of Practice|url=http://www.ldauk.org.uk:80/Code-of-Practice_pg11.aspx|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100410205528/http://www.ldauk.org.uk/Code-of-Practice_pg11.aspx|archive-date=10 April 2010|website=Lap Dancing Association|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|first=Ewan|last=Turney|date=21 April 2008|publisher=Morning Advertiser|url=http://www.morningadvertiser.co.uk/news.ma/article/60338?Ntt=lap+dancing&Ntk=All&PagingData=Po_0~Ps_10~Psd_Asc|title=New lap-dancing body launched|access-date=1 September 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110721154449/http://www.morningadvertiser.co.uk/news.ma/article/60338?Ntt=lap+dancing&Ntk=All&PagingData=Po_0~Ps_10~Psd_Asc|archive-date=21 July 2011}}</ref> According to a BBC report, as of November 2008, the association represented roughly one-third of the industry's clubs.<ref name=label>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7709202.stm|title=Lap dancers object to 'sex' label|work=BBC News|date=4 November 2008|access-date=1 September 2015}}</ref> Members included ''For Your Eyes Only'', ''[[Spearmint Rhino]]'', ''Bandit Queen'' and ''Candy Bar''.<ref>{{cite web|title=Reviews|url=http://www.ldauk.org.uk:80/reviews.aspx?section=102|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100410205359/http://www.ldauk.org.uk/reviews.aspx?section=102|archive-date=10 April 2010|website=LapDancing Association|url-status=dead}}</ref> In 2008, clubs were being opened at a rate of about one per week.<ref name=Cooke/>

In April 2008 the LDA proposed that its code of conduct should become legally enforceable by local authorities as part of their licensing function.<ref name=regulation/> The association submitted a memorandum to the [[Culture, Media and Sport Committee]] in November 2008 when the latter was reviewing the Licensing Act 2003.<ref name=Memo/> The association said that there was no sexual activity offered for sale in their clubs, and that to classify them as part of the sex industry would stigmatise performers.<ref name=label/> Simon Warr, who ran the clubs Platinum Lace<ref>{{cite news|title=Would you ever take your girlfriend to watch a lapdancer?|url=https://www.standard.co.uk/lifestyle/would-you-ever-take-your-girlfriend-to-watch-a-lapdancer-6565773.html|newspaper=London Evening Standard|date=10 February 2011|access-date=16 June 2016}}</ref> and For Your Eyes Only<ref>{{cite news|title=Lap dancing boss who invited MP John Whittingdale for strip club tour has club investigated over 'no touching rule breach'|url=https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/lap-dancing-boss-who-invited-7810359|date=22 April 2016|newspaper=The Mirror|author1=John Shammas|author2=Stian Alexander|access-date=16 June 2016}}</ref> and who was the president of the LDA In 2009,<ref name=Cooke/> gave oral evidence to the committee, describing lap dancing as "not sexually stimulating".<ref>{{cite news|title=Lap dancing 'not sexual act' claims head of club organisation|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2008/nov/25/lap-dancing-parliament|newspaper=The Guardian|author=Andrew Sparrow|date=25 November 2008}}</ref> Three MPs undertook a fact-finding visit to a London lap dancing club at the invitation of the LDA.<ref>{{cite news|title=John Whittingdale visited lapdancing club as part of MPs' inquiry|url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2016/apr/19/john-whittingdale-mps-free-dinner-lap-dancing-club-licensing-inquiry|newspaper=The Guardian|date=19 April 2016|author=Robert Booth}}</ref> The association opposed the provisions of the subsequent [[Policing and Crime Act 2009]] which reclassified lap-dancing clubs in England and Wales as "[[sexual entertainment venues]]" instead of "entertainment venues", introduced a licensing system for clubs and allowed local authorities to decide the number and location of lap-dancing clubs in their area.<ref name="bbc1">{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=New powers to crack down on lap-dancing clubs |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8511883.stm |newspaper=BBC News |date=12 February 2010 |access-date=22 September 2015 }}</ref><ref name="Leeds lap dancing clubs face new threat">{{cite news|title=Leeds lap dancing clubs face new threat|url=http://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/news/latest-news/top-stories/leeds-lap-dancing-clubs-face-new-threat-1-5476582 |work=[[Yorkshire Evening Post]]|date=7 March 2013|access-date=7 March 2013}}</ref> Chris Knight, vice-chairman of the LDA, said that the cost of the additional licence required to run a lap dancing club from 2010 could affect many businesses<ref>{{cite news|title=Lap-dancing club rules change comes into force|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8604246.stm|date=6 April 2010|work=BBC News}}</ref> and questioned the right of local authorities to make licensing decisions on "emotive and moralistic grounds".<ref name="bbc1" />

In 2009, the total number of clubs had reached its peak of 310 (approximately twice the number in 2003), and the number of lap-dancers was estimated at 10,000. Lap-dancing clubs had opened in big cities, small towns, and out-of-town business parks.<ref name=Cooke/> The figures plateaued during the subsequent weaker economic climate and had hardly changed by 2012. At that point, the amount of money a lap-dancer earned in an average shift was £230 (down from around £280 in 2011), and the industry was valued at around £300 million. However, some clubs, particularly in London, charged a house fee for the dancers to perform and had an increased number of dancers, which reduced an individual dancer's earnings.<ref>{{cite news|first2=Jerome|first1=Kieran|last2=Taylor|last1=Corcoran|date=12 April 2012|title=The human cost of UK's £300m addiction to lap-dancing|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/the-human-cost-of-uks-300m-addiction-to-lapdancing-7637488.html |work=[[The Independent]]|access-date=10 September 2015}}</ref>

Between 2010 and 2015, there were approximately forty-five refusals of licences for sexual entertainment venues in England and Wales, mainly on the grounds that the locality was unsuitable.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Hubbard|first=Philip|title=Law, sex and the city: regulating sexual entertainment venues in England and Wales|journal=International Journal of Law in the Built Environment|volume= 7 |issue= 1 |pages=5–20|doi= 10.1108/IJLBE-01-2014-0001 |year=2015|doi-access=free}} [https://kar.kent.ac.uk/48043/1/IJLBE-01-2014-0001.pdf Pdf]</ref> The legislation provides for no right of appeal against such refusals, except on the grounds that committees have not followed correct procedure. The number of refusals, together with the costs of licence application, means that there have been few new businesses opened since 2010, with the overall number of clubs declining over time as a number of local authorities implemented a "nil limit" for new clubs.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://sevlicensing.wordpress.com |title=SEV licensing|work=SEV licensing (a blog reviewing licensing news relating to Sexual Entertainment Venue license applications)|access-date=25 September 2015}}</ref>

In February 2014, [[Fiona Mactaggart]] ([[Member of Parliament (UK)|MP]] for [[Slough (UK Parliament constituency)|Slough]]) asked the [[Secretary of State for Work and Pensions]], [[Iain Duncan Smith]], if he would "make it his policy not to offer job subsidies for employing teenagers as auxiliary workers in adult entertainment establishments".<ref name="McVey">{{cite hansard |jurisdiction=United Kingdom|title=Employment: Sex Establishments (written question)|url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201314/cmhansrd/cm140211/text/140211w0002.htm#140211101000116 |house=[[House of Commons of the United Kingdom|House of Commons]] |date=11 February 2014|column_start= 583W |column_end= 584W |speaker= [[Fiona Mactaggart]] ''([[Member of Parliament (UK)|MP]] for [[Slough (UK Parliament constituency)|Slough]])'' & [[Esther McVey]] ''([[Department for Work and Pensions|Minister of State for Employment]])'' }}</ref> Her question related to employers in the adult entertainment industry being offered an incentive of over £2,000 from the [[Department for Work and Pensions]] for every unemployed young person (aged 18–24) that they hired.<ref>{{cite news|last=Piggott|first=Mark|title=UK Government pays sex clubs to employ teenage girls|work=[[International Business Times]]|publisher=[[IBT Media]]|date=16 February 2014}}</ref><ref>{{citation|author=Department for Work and Pensions|author-link=Department for Work and Pensions|contribution= Chapter 20: Youth Contract - Wage Incentive Scheme |title=Work Programme provider guidance (Work Choice only): treatment of different types of employment|pages=4–5|publisher=[[Government of the United Kingdom|HM Government]] |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/462504/wp-pg-chapter-20.pdf |year=2010}}</ref> [[Esther McVey]], the [[Department for Work and Pensions|Minister of State for Employment]], stated that: "The [[Welfare Reform Act 2012]] ensured that vacancies which involve performing sexual activities were banned from being advertised on Government websites and a distinction was made in law to differentiate between performers and ancillary workers."<ref name="McVey" />

====Scotland====
In 2005 [[Tom McCabe]] [[Member of the Scottish Parliament|MSP]] set up the Adult Entertainment Working Group, an advisory body within the [[Scottish Government]], to investigate the legislative issues involved in a proposed lap dancing ban in Scotland. At that time, lap dancing clubs in Scotland were licensed under Section 41 of the [[Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982]], which covers general entertainment licenses, and licences in Scotland could not be refused on the basis of the nature of the entertainment in itself.<ref name=WSP>{{cite web|title="Adult entertainment" / Lap Dancing|url=http://www.womenssupportproject.co.uk/content/lapdancing/204,172/ |publisher=Women's Support Project|access-date=8 March 2016}}</ref> The working group, headed by [[Linda Costelloe Baker]], consisted of academics, lawyers and politicians, and had a working period from April 2005 until April 2006. It commissioned the [[market research]] organisation [[Ipsos MORI]] to examine the public's attitudes towards adult entertainment,<ref>{{cite web|title=Public Attitudes Towards Adult Entertainment|url=https://www.ipsos-mori.com/researchpublications/researcharchive/553/Public-Attitudes-Towards-Adult-Entertainment.aspx|publisher=Ipsos MORI|date=1 June 2006|access-date=8 March 2016}}</ref> completed site visits and took evidence from a variety of witnesses. Respondents to the group's consultation included the [[Church of Scotland]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Adult Entertainment Consultation: Official Response|url=http://www.actsparl.org/media/71708/or%20cos%20-%202005%20adult%20entertainment%20-%20sep%2005.pdf|publisher=Church Of Scotland Church And Society Council|date=28 September 2005|author=Morag Mylne|access-date=8 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160308213805/http://www.actsparl.org/media/71708/or%20cos%20-%202005%20adult%20entertainment%20-%20sep%2005.pdf|archive-date=8 March 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref> The group reported to Scottish ministers on 25 April 2006.

The group concluded that lap dancing venues are a form of "commercial sexual exploitation...which encompasses [[pornography]], [[Cybersex|internet sex chat rooms]], [[Phone sex|sex phone lines]], [[Escort agency|escort services]], prostitution, [[Sexual slavery|trafficking for prostitution]], [[peep show]]s, lap dancing, [[Pole dance|pole dancing]], [[Table dance|table dancing]] and [[Striptease|stripping]]".<ref name=Hubbard>{{cite report|title=Encouraging sexual exploitation? Regulating striptease and "adult entertainment" in the UK|url=https://dspace.lboro.ac.uk/2134/3777|first=Phil|last=Hubbard|date=2008|publisher=Loughborough University|pages=22&26|access-date=8 March 2016}}</ref> It recommended reviewing the licensing of lap dancing venues and proposed national guidelines to prevent performers from touching or being touched by customers, ensuring that activities are visible at all times, and introducing a minimum age of 18 for everyone involved.<ref name=BBC/><ref>{{cite report|url=http://www.gov.scot/Publications/2006/04/24135036/0|title=Adult Entertainment Working Group - Report and Recommendations: Volume 1|author=Linda Costelloe Baker|date=25 April 2006|publisher=The Scottish Government|access-date=8 March 2016}}</ref> A prominent voice of opposition to a lap dancing ban was [[exotic dancer]] [[Veronica Deneuve]] who set out to try to involve the stripping community in the discussion to inform such legislation.<ref name=BBC>{{cite news|title=Report seeks sex industry 'rules'|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/4942096.stm|work=BBC News|date=25 April 2006|access-date=8 March 2016}}</ref> The [[International Union of Sex Workers]] said that the "recommendations are flawed and would be extremely detrimental to workers and operators in the industry".<ref>{{cite press release|title=Trade Union Members Reaction To Scotland's Adult Entertainment Working Group Report|url=http://www.iusw.org/gmb/press-releases/10-may-06/|publisher=International Union of Sex Workers|date=10 May 2006|access-date=8 March 2016}}</ref>

The Scottish Government accepted a number of the recommendations, but it rejected the idea that licensing boards should be able to determine whether full nudity is appropriate in given locales. It also rejected the idea of a compulsory one-metre no-touching zone between dancer and customer, suggesting that this would be unenforceable. It did, however, propose to enable licensing boards to consider nude dance venues as a separate class of venue.<ref name=Hubbard/> No legislation directly followed the group's report. However, the report informed the statement of licensing policy of many licensing boards across Scotland on the introduction of the [[Alcohol licensing laws of the United Kingdom#Licensing law in Scotland|Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005]].<ref>{{cite journal|title= Licensed to thrill|author=Stephen McGowan|url=http://www.journalonline.co.uk/Magazine/58-8/1012938.aspx|date=19 August 2013|journal=Journal of the Law Society of Scotland|access-date=8 March 2016}}</ref>

In 2013 the Scottish Government and carried out a consultation on the regulation of "[[sexual entertainment venues]]".<ref name=WSP/> This, in combination with the AEWG's 2006 report, paved the way for the [[Scottish Parliament]] to introduce licensing reform for lap dancing<ref name=Hubbard/> as part of the [[Air Weapons and Licensing (Scotland) Act 2015]]. This came into effect in 2016 and requires local authorities in Scotland to set out individual policies with regard to the licensing of lap dancing clubs.<ref>{{cite news|title=New air weapon licensing laws to be introduced next year|url=http://www.thenational.scot/news/new-air-weapon-licensing-laws-to-be-introduced-next-year.6077 |date=7 August 2015|author=Martin Hannan|newspaper=The National|access-date=9 March 2016|quote=New rules on the licensing of “sexual entertainment venues” such as lapdancing clubs are also introduced in the Act, with local authorities required to set out their individual policies.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|at=Air Weapons and Licensing (Scotland) Act 2015|url=http://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2015/10/part/3/crossheading/sexual-entertainment-venues/enacted |title=Sexual entertainment venues|website=legislation.gov.uk|access-date=9 March 2016}}</ref>

====Northern Ireland====
Northern Ireland's first lap dancing club was opened by [[Donegal (town)|Donegal]] businessman Jerome Brennan, who already owned lap dancing clubs in [[Dundalk]] and [[Limerick]] in the Republic of Ireland, mainly using dancers from Russia and the Baltic states.<ref name=McDonald1>{{cite news|title=Lap dancers ready to scandalise Ulster|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2002/feb/24/northernireland|author=Henry McDonald|date=24 February 2002|newspaper=The Guardian|access-date=16 February 2018}}</ref> In 2002 Brennan opened the Movie Star Cafe, a lap dancing club in [[Belfast]],<ref name=Groom>{{cite news|title=Lapdance Club Boss Groomed Girl, 15, on Internet|url=https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/lapdance-club-boss-groomed-girl-703855|newspaper=Mirror|date=25 October 2006|access-date=16 February 2018}}</ref> with dancers from Belfast and England.<ref name=McDonald2>{{cite news|title=Belfast war on the lap dance club|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2003/may/18/northernireland.henrymcdonald|newspaper=The Guardian|author=Henry McDonald|date=18 May 2003|access-date=16 February 2018}}</ref> The Belfast club was officially opened as a restaurant to circumvent Northern Ireland's licensing laws. The opening of the club was opposed by Rev. David McIlveen, a minister in the [[Free Presbyterian Church of Ulster]],<ref name=McDonald1/> and the club was often picketed by protesters from the church<ref name=McDonald2/> and women's groups.<ref>{{cite news|title=Paedophile asks to serve jail term in Republic|url=http://www.irishnews.com/news/2013/08/20/news/paedophile-asks-to-serve-jail-term-in-republic-67959/|date=20 August 2013|author=Valerie Robinson|newspaper=The Irish News|access-date=16 February 2018}}</ref> In 2003 councillors from [[Belfast City Council]] expressed their intention to refuse the renewal of the club's licence,<ref name=McDonald2/> and the club closed in November 2003 with debts of over £300,000.<ref name=Groom/> Brennan's nightclub in Dundalk remained open.<ref>{{cite news|title=Assaulted two Gardai on leaving nightclub|url=https://www.independent.ie/regionals/argus/news/assaulted-two-gardai-on-leaving-nightclub-26914105.html|newspaper=The Argus|date=6 August 2004|access-date=16 February 2018}}</ref>

A few years later Northern Ireland businessman Lawrence John organised lap dancing at a [[Hooters]] bar, followed by a clandestine lap dancing club in Belfast in 2007.  It was the subject of a report on the [[BBC Northern Ireland]] TV programme [[Spotlight (BBC Northern Ireland TV programme)|Spotlight]] in 2008 alleging that simulated lesbian [[sex show]]s took place on the premises.<ref>{{cite news|title=Sex Industry in Northern Ireland: Private Dancers|url=https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/imported/sex-industry-in-northern-ireland-private-dancers-28140383.html|first=Gail|last=Walker|date=4 July 2008|newspaper=Belfast Telegraph}}</ref>

===United States===
Some jurisdictions in the [[United States]] outlaw lap dances and enforce a minimum distance between dancer and patron. In [[Seattle]], one such minimum distance ordinance was overturned by [[Referendum|public referendum]] in November 2006.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2006/11/13/america/NA_GEN_US_Seattle_Lap_Dances.php|title=Lap dance ban defeated, Seattle wonders where to put strip clubs|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071013060541/http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2006/11/13/america/NA_GEN_US_Seattle_Lap_Dances.php|archive-date=13 October 2007|date=13 November 2006|newspaper=International Herald Tribune}}</ref>

Also in 2006, concerned about reports of [[sexual assault]] and illegal stage fees, San Francisco's Commission on the Status of Women recommended a ban on private rooms and booths at adult clubs in the city. However, a majority of dancers at the Commission's meetings and the [[San Francisco Board of Supervisors]]' meetings protested against these efforts, fearing for their income and claiming that these rooms were safer than other venues.<ref name=autogenerated2>{{cite news |url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/08/05/BAGQEKBSMH1.DTL |title=Adult club private rooms debated |date=5 August 2006|work=[[San Francisco Chronicle]]|first=Charlie|last=Goodyear}}</ref><ref name=autogenerated3>{{cite news |url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/08/19/BAG2DKLOQ61.DTL |title=Exotic dancers rally at City Hall to halt private-room ban in clubs|date=19 August 2006|work=[[San Francisco Chronicle]]|first=Cicero A.|last=Estrella}}</ref> As a result, the Commission's proposed ban was not adopted by the city.<ref name=autogenerated2 /><ref name=autogenerated3 />

In February 2010, the [[Detroit City Council]] voted to ban lap dances in VIP rooms.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mlive.com/news/detroit/index.ssf/2010/02/detroit_detroit_city_council_v.html |title=Detroit City Council votes to allow alcohol, ban lap dances in strip clubs|work=MLive.com|date=24 February 2010 |access-date=11 September 2015}}</ref> However, across from Detroit in [[Windsor, Ontario]] in Canada, lap dancing remained legal, even where alcohol was served, and sex clubs were also legal in Windsor.

In 2012, the [[New York Court of Appeals]] ruled that lap dances were not an [[art form]] and are subject to [[sales tax]].<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/anthonynitti/2012/10/23/new-york-court-of-appeals-lap-dancing-is-not-an-art-form-is-subject-to-sales-tax/ |title=New York Court of Appeals: Lap Dancing Is Not An Art Form, Is Subject To Sales Tax|magazine=Forbes|date=23 October 2012|access-date=8 January 2014}}</ref>

==Labor issues and job conditions==
[[File:Striptease Topless Lapdance.jpg|thumb|upright|An [[Erotic_dance|exotic dancer]] doing a contact topless lap dance]]
The economic position of lap dancers, as employees of the clubs, has also changed. Over time, most strip clubs have stopped paying wages to the dancers. Stage dancing became a showcase to advertise the bodies of the dancers, whose money came from the [[Tip (gratuity)|tips]] or standard charges, depending on the club, that the patrons gave them for lap dancing. In the majority of clubs, dancers are simply charged a percentage of their nightly takings. However, the latest development in many countries, including Great Britain, the United States and Canada, is that many clubs charge dancers a "stage fee" or "[[Tip (gratuity)|tip]]-out", which is an amount that a dancer needs to pay a club (usually in advance) in order to work on a given night, per shift. The lapdancers are expected to tip the "house mothers" (women who work in a strip club to support and assist the dancers) and [[DJ]]s.

Given that dancers are basically paying for the privilege to be at a club, some clubs allow as many dancers as possible to appear on any given night, increasing [[competition]] among the dancers. Also, the vast majority of clubs will not waive this charge if a night happens to be slow. Consequently, the dancer either leaves her shift without any profit or builds a debt to the club.<ref name="Burana">''Strip City: A Stripper's Farewell Journey Across America'', Lily Burana, Talk Miramax Books, 2001</ref>

Concerns raised by lapdancers include patrons [[stalking]] them, exposing their penis, [[ejaculating]] in their pants, attempting to have sex with the dancers without their [[sexual consent|consent]], or committing [[sexual assault]].<ref name="Schwartz">{{cite web |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/strippers-explain-strip-club-etiquette-723/ |title= Strippers Explain Strip Club Etiquette|last= Schwartz|first=Zachary |date= 24 July 2015|website=vice.com |publisher= Vice|access-date= 1 May 2020}}</ref>
Some lapdance clubs have [[CCTV]] cameras in the "champagne rooms" for the safety of the dancers.<ref name="Schwartz"/> Dancer Mary Jane says that when a lapdancer wishes to have paid sexual activities with a client, she tips the management, waitresses, and DJ to "turn a blind eye" to these sexual  activities.<ref name="Lucero">{{cite web |url=https://therooster.com/blog/strippers-explain-secret-menu-found-most-clubs |title= Strippers explain the 'secret menu' found at most clubs|last= Lucero|first= Karisha|date= 18 January 2018|website=therooster.com |publisher=The Rooster|access-date= 1 May 2020}}</ref>

In the U.S., most clubs treat dancers as [[independent contractor]]s, thereby avoiding the need to pay [[minimum wage]]s, [[overtime pay]], [[income tax]]es and other benefits required by law. This status has repeatedly been challenged by some dancers. While labor commissions and the courts have, for the most part, ruled that [[exotic dancer]]s are employees and deserving of reimbursement for [[wikt:back payment|back pay]] and stage fees,<ref name=sfweekly/><ref name="Burana"/> some court decisions have decided that an exotic dancer can be classified as an independent contractor. In June 2006, in ''Tracy Buel v. Chowder House (dba The Hungry I)'' an [[appellate court]] of [[California]]'s first district ruled that dancer Tracy Buel, also known as "Daisy Anarchy", was correctly classified as an independent contractor and that "Buel shall pay defendants’ costs on appeal". A publication called the California Employment Law Letter described the case as follows: "The dancer based her suit on the fact that she was an employee of the [[nightclub]] rather than an independent contractor. The appellate court, however, after applying a 10-factor test, upheld the jury's verdict in favor of the nightclub and its owners and found that the evidence weighed in favor of classifying the dancer as an independent contractor rather than an employee."<ref>"Exotic dancer stripped of her job", David R. Ongaro, [[California Employment Law Letter]], Vol. 16, No. 9. 14 July 2006</ref>

In an article written for ''[[The Guardian]]'', which was partly based on an interview with an anonymous former stripper,<ref name=bell>Bell, Rachel, [https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/mar/19/gender.uk 'I was seen as an object, not a person'], ''[[The Guardian]]'' (19 March 2008), Accessed: 23 October 2011</ref> journalist Rachel Bell claimed that "[r]esearch shows that the majority of women become lap-dancers through poverty and lack of choice,"<ref name=bell /> and that "academic research has linked lap-dancing to [[Human trafficking|trafficking]], prostitution and an increase in male [[sexual violence]] against both the women who work in the clubs and those who live and work in their vicinity." For example, a "recent conference in [[Ireland]] highlighted the use of lap-dance clubs by human traffickers as a tool for grooming women into prostitution; the clubs also normalise the idea of paying for [[sexual services]]."<ref name= bell /> "[R]esearch on strip clubs in the US found that all dancers had suffered verbal harassment and [[physical abuse|physical]] and [[sexual abuse]] while at work; all had been propositioned for prostitution; and three-quarters had been [[stalking|stalked]] by men associated with the club."<ref name=bell />

However, these claims have been disputed by some studies. A paper published in 2020 which examined the relationship between strip clubs and rates of sexual violence and violent crime in the United States concluded that "strip clubs were significantly associated with violent crime, but not with"<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Hipp |first1=Tracy N. |last2=Borgman |first2=Robyn A. |last3=Gilmore |first3=Devin |last4=Swartout |first4=Kevin M. |date=10 October 2020 |title=Exploring the relationship between strip clubs and rates of sexual violence and violent crime |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/jcop.22376 |journal=Journal of Community Psychology |volume=49 |issue=4 |pages=962–979 |doi=10.1002/jcop.22376 |access-date=19 December 2024|url-access=subscription }}</ref> sexual violence.

Another analysis, conducted by the [[University of Leeds]], "which involved interviews with 300 dancers, found there was a high level of job satisfaction and all had some qualifications",<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/2010/08/27/us-britain-lapdancing-idUSTRE67Q2YW20100827/ |title=Study finds quarter of UK lap dancers have degrees |date=27 August 2010 |website=Reuters |access-date=19 December 2024}}</ref> while another concluded that "that there are other motivations to stripping beside just economic",<ref name="Monchalin">{{cite thesis |last=Monchalin |first=Lisa |date=2006 |title=Motivations of professional strippers |url=https://commons.emich.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1001&context=theses |degree=MA |chapter=1 |publisher=Eastern Michigan University |access-date=19 December 2024}}</ref> and that "[n]on-monetary motivations were significantly important ... and were discussed more than monetary motivations"<ref name="Monchalin"/> by those who were examined. The overwhelming majority of those surveyed were satisfied with their work, because they got to choose their own hours, got paid instantly, got more money than in other available jobs, and had the opportunity to combine "fun and work" (e.g., [[socializing]] with other dancers and patrons).<ref name=regulatory>Sanders, Teela & Hardy, Kate, [https://leeds.academia.edu/KateHardy/Papers/696317/Findings_-_The_Regulatory_Dance_Lap_Dancing_in_the_UK 'The Regulatory Dance: Sexual Consumption in the Night Time Economy'] (April 2011), Accessed on 24 October 2011</ref><ref>Colosi(2010), p. 2.</ref> They also stated that "groups hostile toward stripping disregard their right to free speech and occupational choice, dismiss their ability to think for themselves, and are patronizing and condescending".<ref name="Monchalin"/> At the same time, the same study revealed various disadvantages to lap dancing work, such as uncertainty regarding earnings, having to keep their job secret from friends and family, and occasionally having to face rude and abusive customers. Additionally, while most felt safe, almost half of the dancers interviewed had faced frequent [[Verbal abuse|verbal harassment]] and unwanted touching from patrons. Another issue raised by the dancers was their lack of [[labour rights]] in the workplace and high [[overhead cost]]s – house fees (or stage fees), commissions, fines (whether paid directly to the club's management or not), and tipping out (or paying a portion of their income) to [[DJ]]s and [[Bouncer (doorman)|bouncers]].<ref name=regulatory />

Critics of lap dancing choose to describe it as a type of [[sex work]], because, in their opinion, "it is difficult to discern between the performance of [[erotic dance]] and prostitution."<ref>Ditmore, Melissa Hope: Prostitution and Sex Work. ABC-CLIO, 2010, pp. 6-7</ref> However, others contend that it is a [[misnomer]] to call a ''lap dancer'' a ''sex worker'', because no [[sexual act]] is technically performed during a typical lap dance. Club owners in the UK argue that lap dancing should not be labelled as sex work.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7709202.stm |title=UK &#124; Lap dancers object to 'sex' label|work=BBC News|date=4 November 2008|access-date=27 June 2014}}</ref> On the other hand, one lapdancer, Mary Jane, told a reporter that she and other lapdancers negotiate “extras" (nicknamed the "secret menu") with clients, such as a "hand job" (male masturbation) or sexual intercourse, for additional payment.<ref name="Lucero"/>

In 2007, based on statistics from eighteen dancers over a period of 60 days, it was noted that female lap dancers earned the highest tips around the time of [[ovulation]], during the most fertile period of their [[menstrual cycle]] and the lowest tips during [[menstruation]]; the average difference in earning between those two times amounted to about $30 per hour. Women on [[Combined oral contraceptive pill|the pill]] earned overall less than those not on the pill. The results were interpreted as evidence of [[estrus]] in humans: females apparently advertise their fertility status to males in some manner.<ref name=Miller>{{cite journal|last1=Miller|first1=Geoffrey|last2=Tybus|first2=Joshua M.|last3=Jordan|first3=Brent D.|author-link1=Geoffrey Miller (psychologist)|date=November 2007|url=http://www.unm.edu/%7Egfmiller/cycle_effects_on_tips.pdf |title=Ovulatory cycle effects on tip earnings by lap dancers: economic evidence for human estrus?|journal=Evolution and Human Behavior|volume=28|issue=6|pages=375–381|doi=10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2007.06.002|access-date=30 January 2016|citeseerx=10.1.1.154.8176}}</ref> This finding earned its authors the [[List of Ig Nobel Prize winners#2008|2008]] [[Ig Nobel Prize]] (a parody of the [[Nobel Prize]] given for unusual or trivial achievements in scientific research) in Economics.<ref name=Miller/>

===Level of contact===
Establishments that offer lap dancing, and the lap dancers themselves, are sometimes rated regarding "mileage."  It refers to the amount of contact between dancer and patron during the performance.  Every jurisdiction has its own laws regarding such contact, but enforcement of these laws is sporadic. Ultimately, it comes down to what the club and the dancer will allow.

[[Nevada]], and especially [[Las Vegas]], have established very lenient laws regarding what contact is allowed during a lap dance.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Pordum|first1=Matt|title=Judge Agrees That Erotic Dance Law is Too Vague|url=http://lasvegassun.com/news/2005/jan/24/judge-agrees-that-erotic-dance-law-is-too-vague/|website=Las Vegas Sun|access-date=7 June 2016|date=2005-01-24}}</ref>  Patrons may legally touch the dancer anywhere she will permit, excluding the genitals.  This has led to a pricing strategy in some all-nude strip clubs, in which a standard lap dance is considered to be just topless with no contact, but can be upgraded to include full nudity or touching with additional payment.

==In film==
{{Unreferenced section|date=December 2023}}
* 1995: In the film ''[[Showgirls]]'', Zack Carey ([[Kyle MacLachlan]]) gets a lap dance from Nomi Malone ([[Elizabeth Berkley]]).
* 1999: In the film ''[[Go (1999 film)|Go]]'', Marcus ([[Taye Diggs]]) and a friend get lap dances in [[Las Vegas]], but violence ensues when a [[bouncer (doorman)|bouncer]] assaults them after some hand-contact with a lap dancer.
* 2001: In director [[Wayne Wang]]'s film ''[[The Center of the World]]'' starring [[Peter Sarsgaard]] and [[Molly Parker]], a wealthy dot-com entrepreneur becomes obsessed with a lap dancer.
* 2007: In [[Quentin Tarantino]]'s film ''[[Death Proof]]'', Butterfly performs a lap dance on Stuntman Mike to [[The Coasters]]' "[[Down in Mexico]]". In the double-feature ''Grindhouse'', the scene was abruptly "skipped" in a comical manner.
* 2010: In the film ''[[Welcome to the Rileys]]'' starring [[James Gandolfini]] and [[Kristen Stewart]], an emotionally damaged man tries to help a wayward lap dancer.
* 2014: Within the film ''[[Lap Dance (film)|Lap Dance]]'' starring [[Carmen Electra]], an actress makes a pact with her fiancé to take a job as a lap dancer in order to take care of her cancer-stricken father.

==See also==
{{div col|colwidth=22em}}
* [[Erotic dance]]
* [[Legal status of striptease]]
* [[Pole dance]]
* [[Strip club]]
* [[Striptease]]
* [[Taxi dancer]]
* [[Las Vegas Dancers Alliance]]
{{div col end}}

==References==
'''Notes'''
{{Reflist}}

'''Bibliography'''
*{{cite book |last=Colosi|first=Rachela |title=Dirty Dancing?: An Ethnography of Lap Dancing | publisher=Willan Publishing | location=New York |year=2010  |isbn=978-1843928171 }}
*{{cite book |first=David |last=McCumber | title=X-Rated | publisher=Pinnacle Books | location=New York|year=1992 | isbn=978-0786011131   }}

==External links==
* {{Commons category-inline}}

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{{Dance|state=collapsed}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lap Dance}}
[[Category:Erotic dance]]