HIV/AIDS and the Workplace, Workplace HIV/AIDS Programmes, Health and Work, HIV/AIDS Workplace Policy and more on Mywage Zambia.
With worrying levels of HIV and AIDS cases in Zambia, employers and trade unions in many other countries have cooperated to develop HIV/AIDS policies for their workplaces. These policies include actions to prevent discrimination against recruitment of HIV positive persons, safeguards to protect infected workers and AIDS education and counseling in the workplace.
In an interview with MyWage Zambia, Civil Servants and Allied Workers Union of Zambia (CSAWUZ) director of workers’ education and training, Patrick Mazila answered some questions on the importance of the HIV/AIDS programmes, and dispelled some fears expressed by workers.
What services does the HIV/AIDS Workplace Programmes offer?
- Care and support programmes
- Provision of information on how to access HIV and AIDS treatment
- Health services (by provision of a clinic)
- HIV and AIDS awareness programmes.
- Inclusion of HIV and AIDS issues in collective bargaining agreements.
Are these programmes working and are workers aware of their benefits?
These programmes are working and employees are aware that they exist within their workplaces and are making use of them. The evidence is the number of workers accessing these services.
What are some of the challenges employers and employees are facing in relation to these programmes?
Budgeting has been one of the major challenges. However, employers and employees have sat down to discuss the cost benefits, and issues of attrition and loss of man-hours have been settled. Unions and employers agree that a worker who is HIV positive is still an asset to the company.
The HIV/AIDS Workplace Programmes and prevention activities seem well documented in Zambia. How are fellow workers responding to colleagues who are positively living with HIV? Does stigma still exist?
Stigma is being addressed through workplace HIV and AIDS focal point discussions. Yes, there are still some elements of stigma. However, this has more to do with self stigmatisation. The individual isolates himself for fear that others will know his status and as a result, his fellow workers start talking about his isolation, leading to stigma.
It is common knowledge that although HIV and AIDS Workplace Programmes are available at various companies, some workers still prefer to access outside support services due to what they term “lack of confidentiality” on the part of the part of counselors running these programmes. What is your comment?
HIV and confidentiality has always been a topic of concern among both clients and counselors or patients. What should however be known is that confidentiality is not absolute. There is also what is known as shared confidentiality, as well as self disclosure. These are professional matters that are discussed during counseling, but which are sometimes misunderstood by both concerned parties in the relationship. Any counselor knows that when it comes to all medical information including HIV and AIDS status, confidentiality must be maintained.
In some cases, workers living with HIV may need a longer period to recover when they fall ill. Can this affect their wages?
As far as wages are concerned, each company has its condition of service that unions have agreed to. The Zambian laws stipulate that every worker has the right to employment, the right to decent work, the right to decent wages, treatment, or health and to go on leave, has a right to be heard; especially, that HIV is workplace issue. It must also be noted that HIV infection is not cause for termination of employment. As with many other illnesses, persons with HIV-related illnesses should be able to work as long as medically fit for appropriate work.
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Find out more about HIV/AIDS Workplace Policies.