The West Valley City Council on Tuesday delayed a vote on an updated massage ordinance at the request of licensed massage therapists who said the measure conflicts with state law and uses outdated terminology.
The updates would include Reiki, a type of spiritual healing, under the definition of massage; enact a dress code requiring massage technicians and massage apprentices to cover up in opaque material from the base of their necks to four inches above the center of their kneecaps; prohibit workplaces from operating between 10 p.m. and 8 a.m.; and set other requirements.
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Among the concerns of the massage therapists was defining Reiki as massage. Reiki practitioners say they relieve pain and ease stress by transferring energy through their hands, which they hold a few inches from the recipient’s body. That technique is not covered in the current West Valley City ordinance, which was last updated in 1992.
Ron Findley, a licensed massage therapist, pointed out that the Utah Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing says Reiki is not massage.
Roger Olbrot, president of the American Massage Therapy Association’s Utah chapter, objected to the proposed ordinance’s use of "masseur," which he said is considered a derogatory term in the United States. In addition, the proposed ordinance refers to "massage technicians," a term that the state dropped in 1998, Olbrot said. The state now uses the term licensed massage therapist, he said.
Olbrot also said the dress code is vague and that licensed massage therapists already are required to follow rules that says their clothing must be clean and modest.
The Utah Legislature also is looking at updating massage regulations. A pending bill, HB114, would modify current state law to say massage therapy includes providing, offering or advertising a paid service using any derivative of the term massage, regardless of whether there is physical contact.
West Valley City Council members voted 7-0 to reconsider the issue at their March 6 meeting so city administrators could review the massage therapists’ concerns.
To read the proposed ordinance, go to bit.ly/y6CCCW.
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