It is essential for the Worker/Trade Union Leader to help the Company management in helping it fight against HIV/AIDS .Several years of research clearly indicate that the early investments in education, prevention campaigns and health care provision may be initially costly, but they will have long-term cost benefits. Inaction, on the other hand, will result in increased production costs related to the rising of HIV rates.
A trade union leader/worker hold an important key in the entire HIV/AIDS prevention dynamics. Owing to his/her stature and the fact that workers will often find it easier to confide to a fellow worker rather than a Health Educator or a doctor or even the management staff whom he has never even earlier seen or even heard about. Thus they are indispensable and are to be help the management to “break the ice” during the initial period of Education and prevention campaign when workers or even some management staff may refuse to attend any such programmes.
Trade Union Workers/leaders should themselves start promoting safe sex practices and help/motivate/coordinate with government health workers and also the company management regarding safe sex practices. An informed progressive workplace can manage the impact and costs of the epidemic by providing care and support to help infected workers live longer and to work more productively rather than downgrading workers because of their HIV status.
One essential considerations for Trade Union leaders involved in workplace HIV/AIDS program is that he/ she cannot disclose the union friends HIV /AIDS status to anyone (even to the employer or to his own family or even the union friend’s family) without explicit consent from your friend. Trade union leaders need to be trained on how to deal with such scenarios so that he can counsel his/her union friend to break the stigma and reveal the status to his/her spouse or sexual partner so that they don’t remain in the dark. The trade union leader should also make it a point to see that the HIV/AIDS affected union friend visits the physician and ensure and encourage the friend to avail the benefits as per your company norms.
Key Message for Labour /Trade Union Leaders
- It affects fundamental rights at work
- Causes suffering to individuals and their families
- Stigma, discrimination and victimisation of HIV+ workers is still undesirable
- Loss of jobs and income is an issue that falls well within the trade union responsiblity.
- Being supportive to the union brother /sister is the moral/social/political obligation of all trade union workers/leaders.
- Worker rights protections are a major benefit to the workplace policies.
- Components of workplace policies can become part of collective bargaining agreements
- An HIV/AIDS policy of the union can be used as a recruitment tool
- Workers need education to address stigma