London CNN —Sex workers in Belgium are now entitled to formal employment contracts, which include sick pay and maternity leave, under a landmark law that went into effect Sunday. The new law requires the employers of sex workers to obtain a license from the government, Deltour told CNN. These laws made it “impossible to perform the job in a normal and safe way,” according to the Belgian Union of Sex Workers. That was a crucial step in protecting sex workers from violence, for example, but didn’t give them access to social security. “Sex workers deserve the same rights and freedoms as all workers, and this law is a world first moving us in that direction.”The new law, however, doesn’t cover all types of sex workers.

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Persons: Daan Bauwens, Quentin Deltour, Deltour, “, ” Deltour, Erin Kilbride, ” Organizations: London CNN, Belgian, Belgian Union of Sex Workers, CNN, Espace, Global Network, Sex, “ Employers, Belgium “, Human Rights Watch Locations: Belgium, Belgian, Germany, Netherlands, US