Florida New Massage Regulations: Anti Human Trafficking
November 6th, 2019 by Stephanie Farrer
TL;DR (Which means: Too Long, Didn’t Read): Don’t come to my office to solicit me. Massage therapists are NOT prostitutes. Let me say this again: Massage Therapists are NOT prostitutes. The State of Florida is cracking down on human trafficking—and I am very happy about this.
The Florida Legislature recently passed The Human Trafficking Bill, Chapter 2019-152, Laws of Florida, which creates many changes for Licensed Massage Therapists (along with other health care professionals) in the State of Florida. I wanted to go over this legislation on the blog because the issue of human trafficking, unfortunately, has been associated with criminals posing as legitimate massage therapy establishments both in our state and in others. This creates a lot of confusion for the general public, blurring in some minds what it means to be a massage therapist. It’s maddening for legitimate massage therapists! I search the word “massage” a lot—looking for new modalities and news affecting my profession—and it seems like every news article coming out has to do with this topic. There is a definite upswing in sting operations, shutting down facilities that pretend to be offering massage therapy. I think that legislation and law enforcement, along with tips from the public-at-large, can further take these illegal operations down.
Note: I have not forgotten the rest of the Trigger Point series! I promise—it’s coming! I just thought this issue was too important not to cover it right away. We will get back to busting up those knots soon, you have my word.
The new legislation notes that Florida ranks third in human trafficking abuses in the United States. It states that “the crime of human trafficking is a gross violation of human rights,” and that the Legislature is taking measures to raise awareness, prevent, and deter human trafficking networks. The legislation deems it “critical to the health, safety, and welfare of the people of this state” because “repeat offenders are extremely likely to use violence and to repeat their offenses, and to commit many offenses with many victims, many of whom are never given justice”. It states that “traffickers and clients of human trafficking networks often use hotels, motels, public lodging establishments, massage establishments, spas, or property rental sharing sites” and creates new rules and mandatory continuing education on both sex and labor trafficking for practitioners holding State of Florida licenses. For Licensed Massage Therapists, this means that we will be required to take an hour course in addition to the previous courses we have taken on human trafficking to help us identify and report suspected instances of human trafficking.
In addition to the continuing education, Licensed Massage Therapists will also be required to conspicuously post a sign that states the following in both English and Spanish:
“If you or someone you know is being forced to engage in an activity and cannot leave, whether it is prostitution, housework, farm work, factory work, retail work, restaurant work, or any other activity, call the National Human Trafficking Resource Center at 888-373-7888 or text INFO or HELP to 233-733 to access help and services. Victims of slavery and human trafficking are protected under United States and Florida law.”
Near this sign, Florida Licensed Massage Therapists will also be required to post another sign detailing a plan of action for reporting suspected instances of human trafficking. Each massage establishment must appoint an establishment manager who takes on the responsibility for reporting. In my office, obviously, that person is me. I already had information about reporting human trafficking in my Policies and Procedures (which are available on this website), but now there are clear plans in place should I need to report any suspected illegal activity.
In addition to new laws for Licensed Massage Therapists and other healthcare practitioners, clients convicted of soliciting prostitution at these illegal establishments will be entered into a database called the Soliciting for Prostitution Public Database. I find this very interesting. The State is now going after people who solicit these victims, and I believe that this is a vital step toward change.
It goes without saying that I wholeheartedly approve of this legislation. Our cultural perceptions surrounding human trafficking—and massage therapy—are changing. When I started massage school in 2007, it wasn’t uncommon for patients or clients to refer to massage therapists as their “masseuse’. Slowly, this has changed. I am not a masseuse, and I will gently correct you if you call me one. If you come to my office and solicit me for illegal activity—you will not see a gentle response from me. Ask the gentleman who approached me recently. I’ve never seen someone walk away from my office so fast in their life. It saddens me, thinking that another woman out there doesn’t have the choice to turn someone away that I have. We have to do everything we can to fix this. I believe that this new legislation is a step toward it. I do not mind putting up new signage or taking classes if it moves us forward. And please—if you know of situations where this is happening—do something about it. I know I will.
Thank you so much for hanging around for the whole blog post! I truly appreciate you! Below are important links where you can learn more about what Florida is doing to end human trafficking, along with the number to call if you have anything to report.
—Stephanie
Important Links:
Chapter 2019-152: The actual legislation. Lays out exactly what changes are taking place.
National Human Trafficking Resource Center: Resource for reporting human trafficking.
1-888-373-7888: Call this number to report human trafficking.
Stephanie Farrer Massage Therapy Policies and Procedures: The procedures I follow here at my office. Includes notice that I will report any suspected human trafficking immediately.
Stephanie Farrer Massage Therapy Privacy Policy: My office privacy policy. States that I will disclose personal information in the event I have to report suspected human trafficking. Policy given to every patient of Stephanie Farrer Massage Therapy.
Florida New Massage Regulations: Anti Human Trafficking
November 6th, 2019 by Stephanie Farrer
TL;DR (Which means: Too Long, Didn’t Read): Don’t come to my office to solicit me. Massage therapists are NOT prostitutes. Let me say this again: Massage Therapists are NOT prostitutes. The State of Florida is cracking down on human trafficking—and I am very happy about this.
The Florida Legislature recently passed The Human Trafficking Bill, Chapter 2019-152, Laws of Florida, which creates many changes for Licensed Massage Therapists (along with other health care professionals) in the State of Florida. I wanted to go over this legislation on the blog because the issue of human trafficking, unfortunately, has been associated with criminals posing as legitimate massage therapy establishments both in our state and in others. This creates a lot of confusion for the general public, blurring in some minds what it means to be a massage therapist. It’s maddening for legitimate massage therapists! I search the word “massage” a lot—looking for new modalities and news affecting my profession—and it seems like every news article coming out has to do with this topic. There is a definite upswing in sting operations, shutting down facilities that pretend to be offering massage therapy. I think that legislation and law enforcement, along with tips from the public-at-large, can further take these illegal operations down.
Note: I have not forgotten the rest of the Trigger Point series! I promise—it’s coming! I just thought this issue was too important not to cover it right away. We will get back to busting up those knots soon, you have my word.
The new legislation notes that Florida ranks third in human trafficking abuses in the United States. It states that “the crime of human trafficking is a gross violation of human rights,” and that the Legislature is taking measures to raise awareness, prevent, and deter human trafficking networks. The legislation deems it “critical to the health, safety, and welfare of the people of this state” because “repeat offenders are extremely likely to use violence and to repeat their offenses, and to commit many offenses with many victims, many of whom are never given justice”. It states that “traffickers and clients of human trafficking networks often use hotels, motels, public lodging establishments, massage establishments, spas, or property rental sharing sites” and creates new rules and mandatory continuing education on both sex and labor trafficking for practitioners holding State of Florida licenses. For Licensed Massage Therapists, this means that we will be required to take an hour course in addition to the previous courses we have taken on human trafficking to help us identify and report suspected instances of human trafficking.
In addition to the continuing education, Licensed Massage Therapists will also be required to conspicuously post a sign that states the following in both English and Spanish:
“If you or someone you know is being forced to engage in an activity and cannot leave, whether it is prostitution, housework, farm work, factory work, retail work, restaurant work, or any other activity, call the National Human Trafficking Resource Center at 888-373-7888 or text INFO or HELP to 233-733 to access help and services. Victims of slavery and human trafficking are protected under United States and Florida law.”
Near this sign, Florida Licensed Massage Therapists will also be required to post another sign detailing a plan of action for reporting suspected instances of human trafficking. Each massage establishment must appoint an establishment manager who takes on the responsibility for reporting. In my office, obviously, that person is me. I already had information about reporting human trafficking in my Policies and Procedures (which are available on this website), but now there are clear plans in place should I need to report any suspected illegal activity.
In addition to new laws for Licensed Massage Therapists and other healthcare practitioners, clients convicted of soliciting prostitution at these illegal establishments will be entered into a database called the Soliciting for Prostitution Public Database. I find this very interesting. The State is now going after people who solicit these victims, and I believe that this is a vital step toward change.
It goes without saying that I wholeheartedly approve of this legislation. Our cultural perceptions surrounding human trafficking—and massage therapy—are changing. When I started massage school in 2007, it wasn’t uncommon for patients or clients to refer to massage therapists as their “masseuse’. Slowly, this has changed. I am not a masseuse, and I will gently correct you if you call me one. If you come to my office and solicit me for illegal activity—you will not see a gentle response from me. Ask the gentleman who approached me recently. I’ve never seen someone walk away from my office so fast in their life. It saddens me, thinking that another woman out there doesn’t have the choice to turn someone away that I have. We have to do everything we can to fix this. I believe that this new legislation is a step toward it. I do not mind putting up new signage or taking classes if it moves us forward. And please—if you know of situations where this is happening—do something about it. I know I will.
Thank you so much for hanging around for the whole blog post! I truly appreciate you! Below are important links where you can learn more about what Florida is doing to end human trafficking, along with the number to call if you have anything to report.
—Stephanie
Important Links:
Chapter 2019-152: The actual legislation. Lays out exactly what changes are taking place.
National Human Trafficking Resource Center: Resource for reporting human trafficking.
1-888-373-7888: Call this number to report human trafficking.
Stephanie Farrer Massage Therapy Policies and Procedures: The procedures I follow here at my office. Includes notice that I will report any suspected human trafficking immediately.
Stephanie Farrer Massage Therapy Privacy Policy: My office privacy policy. States that I will disclose personal information in the event I have to report suspected human trafficking. Policy given to every patient of Stephanie Farrer Massage Therapy.
