Covid 19 coronavirus Delta outbreak: New rules for sex workers under level 2

Protection has taken on a different meaning for sex workers. Photo / 123RF

The shift to level 2 for all of New Zealand outside of Auckland has meant that many aspects of normal life can now resume - but under new rules know as "Delta 2".

It means masks, customer limits and mandatory scanning - and is presenting a challenge for many businesses.

One industry particularly impacted are sex workers, who now face adding levels of protection beyond familiar prophylactics such as condoms.

The New Zealand Sex Workers' Collective or NZPC has issued fresh advice to sex workers, reminding them that mask use is mandatory.

"While sex work can occur at level 2, venues are limited to no more than 50 people indoors, and all people, staff and clients, must wear a mask," they wrote in advice posted online.

"This means you may have to be inventive for what positions and activities you undertake as you will not be able to kiss or be within the moist breath zone."

There was also a reminder that staff and clients should record visits by QR code or manual register.

"If you are working from home, or going on outcalls, you must keep a record of who you see (and their address if it is an outcall), and you must wear a mask at all times," the NZPC said.

The term "moist breath zone" has been floating around since last year, when it hit the headlines after a New Zealand primary school teacher penned a catchy tune to help children learn correct physical distancing.

Sex workers in New Zealand reported earlier in the outbreak that there had been a drop in demand, compared to previous outbreaks, perhaps due to greater concerns about the Delta variant's transmissibility.

Dame Catherine Healy of Aotearoa New Zealand Sex Workers' Collective said the more common problem in the last lockdown was clients pestering sex workers to flout rules and meet in person, but Healy said she'd received fewer such complaints lately.

Sometimes, sex workers placed ads on escort websites before lockdowns were activated, and there was a lag before those ads were removed, she said.