After a round of dances on stage, one man opted for a private-room performance. So one woman earned at least $100.

Washington’s exotic dancers work under a brutal, chaotic economic model that the state Legislature is thinking about changing. “The whole business model is based on the backs of the dancers,” said Sen. Rebecca Saldana, D-Seattle.

Saldana introduced Senate Bill 5614 to change that, as well as to upgrade safety measures and guard against unfair terminations of their contracts.

The key proposed change would allow liquor to be sold at strip clubs, which Saldana, three interviewed dancers, and Eric Forbes, owner of seven Puget Sound-area and two Portland-area strip clubs including Deja Vu and Dream Girls, say would drastically change this scene’s financial dynamics.

“This bill would significantly change the relationship between the dancers and the establishments,” Forbes told the Senate Labor & Commerce Committee at a Feb. 6 hearing on SB 5614.

Washington is one of a few states that do not allow liquor to be sold in strip clubs. Oregon allows the sale of liquor, which has led to a thriving exotic-dancing industry in Portland.

Alcohol sales are a huge revenue source for the Portland clubs. The 11 clubs in Washington cannot make money from selling alcohol, so they pile fees on their dancers to make a profit.

Almost all exotic dancers are independent contractors, not employees of the clubs.

That means a club does not pay them to dance. Instead, the dancer pays...

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