Vogue signs contract to protect models at work Their working day will now consist of ten hours, with regular breaks to sustain them, with no models under the age of 16 used to represent adults. All youngsters are to be accompanied by a chaperone, with no nudity or semi-nudity required. Hailing the decision to sign the contract, Equity has now called Vogue a "pioneer in the international modelling industry" which is "committed to the health and welfare of models." "pioneer" in showing the commitment to protect models. Alexandra Shulman, editor of British Vogue, said the contract was a sign of the magazine's "continued commitment" to setting the "benchmark" for the industry. The union now hopes other magazines follow Vogue's example, bringing in the clauses throughout the fashion industry. Last year, supermodel Kate Moss spoke of her experiences as a young model, admitting her frequent nudity on photo shoots caused her distress. "I see a 16-year-old now, and to ask her to take her clothes off would feel really weird," she told Vanity Fair magazine. "But they were like "If you don't do it, then we're not going to book you again." So I'd lock myself in the toilet and cry and then come out and do it. I never felt very comfortable about it. She added the stress of being told to straddle male models left her bedridden and fearing she would die, with "massive pressure to do what you had to do." A spokeswoman for Equity said the union was "delighted" to sign the first model of conduct with Vogue, Dunja Knezevic, a working model and current chair of Equity's models committee, said: "Signing up to Equity's Code shows Vogue UK's dedication to improving the working conditions of models. Alexandra Shulman added: "Work has been ongoing in the year since the Health Initiative was announced by all international Vogue editors. Here in Britain we've been working with model agencies to assist in the education and mentorship of younger models, and our support of the Equity Code reinforces our continued commitment to set the benchmark for this important industry issue.