casting-couch

Noun

casting couch (plural casting couches)

1. (euphemistic) The now illegal practice of soliciting sexual favors from a job applicant in exchange for employment, particularly in the entertainment industry.
   • ...when a writing test at a radio station turned into the casting-couch routine. She was typing a piece of copy when she realized the station manager had locked the door and was caressing her shoulders.1978 June, Caryl Rivers, “Sexual Harassment: The executive's alternative to rape”, in Mother Jones Magazine, volume 3, number 5, page 22
2. (slang) An actual couch or sofa used for this practice.
   • There was a wide damask covered divan in a shadowy corner, like a casting couch.1940, Raymond Chandler, chapter 8, in Farewell, My Lovely