Wellington staff at adult entertainment club Calendar Girls were picketing their strip club this weekend after 19 dancers were let go following a request for better contracts.
The women had been pushing for a collective agreement that would require management to provide clear income records and a 60 percent return on earnings.
The case has sparked outrage on social media.
Aotearoa NZ Sex Workers' Collective founder and national coordinator Dame Catherine Healy spoke with Tova O'Brien on Monday morning, telling her these requests are overdue.
"There's a lot of coercion involved in their contracts," Healy said.
"In their contracts, if they don't turn up to work, they're fined.
"They're asking that their independent status of independent contractors be acknowledged and they're asking for industry regulation.
"They want a better percentage of their take, and they want to have more control over the services they provide. They want to be able to determine those services and they want to be able to work for other contractors."
"Just stop the crap of being coerced."
At Calendar Girls, a dancer can be fined NZ$500 for rudeness and NZ$250 for wearing a g-string during a second song.
Calendar Girls told Today FM that it hasn't changed its private dancer cost for 12 years and said in hindsight, they should have put that up a little bit each year.
Healy described the management of these women as "outrageous".
"What's outrageous is the nature of these contracts and the absolutely appalling behaviour of the management and the neglect.
"It just seems extreme to me."
Healy told O'Brien she would like to see WorkSafe get involved to help support these women.
"Have a look at the coercive nature of these contracts," Healy said.
"The women have spoken about labour trafficking, not in the sense that they feel that they've been trafficked, but saying that some of the conditions are akin to that.
"Surely there should be a government agency with a budget there, who can take the audit pen and have a look and apply some sort of response to this."
Listen to the full interview between Dame Catherine Healy and Tova above.
You can also download the full interview on the Tova podcast, and listen on the go.
