The council voted unanimously Tuesday night in favor of new rules that give the city's health inspectors the authority to revoke a massage business's license if it commits even one violation. Though city officials say prostitution in massage parlors has not been a problem in Hackensack, they say the new regulations were put in place as a preventative measure. Previously, health inspectors could drop in unannounced to massage parlors for their annual inspections.
But the city's code did not include rules that specifically regulate such establishments. Now, massage parlor owners will be required to provide sterilization plans and up to date employee lists, complete with Social Security numbers and valid identifications, to prevent massage therapists from using fake IDs. Rules that would identify employees and clients down to the signature are also included, which officials say will create a record that would dissuade potential johns from soliciting sexual favors.
Also included are rules such as the covering of genitalia during massages and prohibiting even the offer of fondling a client's genitalia. The new rules also prohibit sleeping quarters in massage establishments and restrict hours of operation from 7 a.
Often times, sex workers at illegal massage parlors both work and sleep at the business, an indicator of sex trafficking, according to Polaris Project, a nonprofit organization that combats human trafficking.
Hackensack's rules are modeled after similar legislation adopted in towns such as Wayne and Paramus. Both towns had a history of massage parlors being used as fronts for prostitution. Stringent standards are necessary to combat massage parlors where prostitution often takes place, Det. Traditionally, enforcement of prostitution laws consists of sending in an undercover officer to get a massage and, if the officer is solicited, arrest the employee that offered sexual services, Celentano has said.
