Evasive Angles and TTB Productions, both adult companies owned by T.T. Boy, each received citations from California's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (Cal/OSHA) totaling $30,560 for violations of health and safety regulations related to the exposure of three performers to HIV earlier this year. The citations were issued Wednesday.
The citations are the first of their kind in the adult industry, and are notable for classifying adult talent as employees, not contract employees. By determining that adult talent should be considered employees, Cal/OSHA has placed the adult industry within their jurisdiction - meaning that production companies must follow Cal/OSHA regulations or leave themselves open to being subjected to penalties that can range from fines to having their studio shut down.
"Employers in the adult film industry must know how to protect their employees from health and safety hazards and understand the consequences of failing to comply with state regulations," said Vicky Heza, Cal/OSHA's deputy chief of enforcement, in a statement released to the media.
The employment status of adult talent was the subject of heated debate during the HIV crisis that began when Darren James was diagnosed as HIV-positive in April of this year. Heza had testified at a public hearing called by Assemblymember Paul Koretz in June that adult performers must be deemed employees for her department to be able to establish jurisdiciton.
Cal/OSHA has created a new pageon their Website to address the issues that arise from these groundbreaking citations.
