Well Said, Metal Smith.
While the ladies rates should reflect both fixed and variable costs, they need to understand that increasing rates will often decrease participation and lead to less total revenue than if they continued with existing rates and increased volume. There are numerous Econ 101 text books that demonstrate this phenomena and the principle is called decreasing marginal utility.
When the price of Gasoline decreased from over $3.00/gal to less than $2.00/gal, were the ladies who do out-calls decreasing their rates? No.
There is also something referred to in economics call elasticity of supply and demand which characterizes some products. If you can differentiate your product from your competitors, then you may successfully increase your price because clients desire your specific type of product over that of others. Now, if your product is a commodity which cannot be differentiated from that of other producers in the market, then you are at risk losing sales/clients if you increase prices while others hold the line with lower prices.
Efforts of banding together to either fix a high price (providers) or keep prices low (hobbyists) may well be doomed to failure from the start, unless the group has 100% participation (good luck with that one, guys/gals). We often see ladies and guys demonstrate this principle in SNATCH thread and ISO postings, where they are often offering or asking at prices other than market equilibrium. End of the month when many have bill come due is an example.
YES, Economics is a dismal science because the market factor work to control supply and demand, and to set prices based on conditions, not government price controls. If someone sets the price artificially low (price controls for Gas in the 70s/80s), then producers will not provide sufficient quantities and Black Markets will appear where the price floats to meet supply and demand--Higher of course than the price controls. If someone sets the prices artificially high (government subsidies for cheese), then producers will produce more of the product than the market can consume and there will be surpluses that need to be distributed or go to waste.
You may disagree with above, but it is most interesting to sit back and observe how this market functions, especially with provider end-of-month pricing by some ladies, visiting ladies who are either above/below ATX market prices, and with hobbyists always looking a good deal.
I will leave validation and challenge of my analysis above to others as a homework assignment. Yes, I used to teach College Econ classes.