Founder of Asperity Consultation, Eva Glosson, is helping clubs avoid costly violations with a proactive safety approach that gives clubs a new competitive edge.
(Note: This article was originally published in the January issue of ED Magazine.)
When regulators show up at the door, the experience is rarely pleasant and always expensive. Asperity Consultation aims to change that reality for clubs with a strategic approach designed to reduce risk, streamline operations, improve worker morale and strengthen insurance standing. A one-woman operation, Asperity Consultation is led by Eva Glosson, an Occupational Safety and Health veteran who has provided critical support to adult nightclubs for more than seven years. Previously, Glosson spent 10 years in regulatory compliance for the state of Washington.
“The way regulators interacted with the adult industry was completely different from how they interacted with any other business,” she says, sharing what inspired her to form Asperity Consultation. “There were so many misconceptions. The industry needed someone who understood both the regulations and the work.”
Glosson ultimately left compliance to help adult businesses stay ahead of safety and health regulations.
“It’s never fun to knock on a business owner’s door and deliver a violation they didn’t see coming,” she admits. “Now I get to work on the proactive side, fixing problems before they become fines.”
Asperity Consultation’s proactive approach helps club owners build robust, legally compliant safety programs that protect dancers, staff and businesses. Glosson creates written safety and health plans, helps clubs navigate workers’ compensation claims, conducts onboarding and safety orientation guidance and ensures clubs meet state or federal OSHA standards.
“OSHA states if someone is conducting work duties in a workplace, these rules apply. They don’t care if you call someone an independent contractor.”
— Eva Glosson
Opting for a reactive approach is the most expensive route a business can take. Glosson has seen OSHA inspections with citations that range from $8,000 to $20,000, and regulators often follow up with a club for months after an inspection.
“It’s a huge burden,” she says. “It’s so much easier to get everything in place beforehand.”
One of the biggest misconceptions Glosson encounters is the belief that OSHA rules don’t apply because dancers aren’t classified as employees. But OSHA’s standards are much broader.
“OSHA basically states if someone is conducting work duties in a workplace, these rules apply,” she explains. “They don’t care if you call someone an independent contractor.”
That means every club, regardless of employment classification, must adhere to OSHA’s requirements, which include written safety programs, training procedures, injury reporting protocols, emergency action plans and more. Even basic procedures illustrating how to safely clean up broken glass or maintain clear exits must be documented. Failing to have these documents updated and accessible is one of the most common (and costly) oversights.
“I’ve had clients using safety programs that were written in the ‘90s when the club first opened, printed on dot matrix paper,” Glosson says with a laugh. “You know the paper with the little tear-off sides? They’ll proudly hand it over to the regulator, who immediately tells them that the program should have been updated annually. That’s how clubs end up with thousands of dollars in penalties.”
And while many club owners implement safety practices instinctively, they often fail to document them correctly.
“Owners absolutely know how to run their businesses,” Glosson says. “They’re experts in entertainment. Not in interpreting OSHA codes or tracking hepatitis B vaccine declinations. That’s what I’m here for.”
To get started, Glosson recommends looking internally to identify recurring complaints, injury patterns or risks staff mention. Then, talk to your network. Other club owners and managers can offer insights and help benchmark expectations.
“And, of course, call me,” she laughs. “I handle everything. Program creation, training, documentation, safety meetings. Some clients call me every day. Others only call when something major happens. I’m basically an on-call safety department.”
For more information, visit www.asperityconsultation.com/adultentertainment.
