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HIV/AIDS Policy Introduced in Public Service

Posted on: Sunday, 25 September 2005, 15:00 CDT

A policy aimed at preventing discrimination against persons with HIV/AIDS and encouraging greater awareness about the infection is being introduced in the public service. Minister for Health and Social Development the Honourable Ronnie W. Skelton noted his approval of such a policy as Government reaches out to those at risk. "The policy forms part of Government's strategy to support those who have contracted HIV. We have to make the workplace one where we all feel safe yet protected from discrimination," he said. Director of Human Resources Mr. David Archer said that in light of current trends Government decided it was necessary to address the issue of HIV/AIDS in the workplace. "The largest age group infected represents persons who are in the prime of their most productive years," he said.Mr

. Archer added that an estimated half-million people in the Caribbean are infected with HIV or diagnosed with AIDS, making it the region with the second greatest prevalence in the world.The policy states that the public service does not discriminate against officers or applicants living with or affected by HIV or AIDS. At the same time it recognises that the presence of infected persons in the workplace poses significant and delicate issues for the workforce.The bulk of the policy attempts to answer major questions about employment as it relates to HIV/AIDS. It addresses misconceptions about the transmission of the infection and its stages of progression. Much of the information is drawn from the International Labor Organization's Code of Practice on HIV/AIDS.The policy has several guiding principles, including raising the level of awareness of public officers about HIV and AIDS, strengthening the capacity of the public service to deal effectively with co- workers with HIV/AIDS and protecting the human rights and dignity of HIV-infected persons. Such protection is widely believed to be essential to the prevention of the spread of the virus. The policy was discussed at a meeting of senior public servants last week. Thursday saw the beginning of a series of training sessions for individuals within the service, who will then be called upon to make presentations on the policy to other employees. The policy will be monitored for successful implementation.Government is expected to enshrine the non-discriminatory policy in law for all employment situations, private and public, within the next year. The Guidelines for HIV/AIDS in the Workplace is a collaborative project of the Human Resources Department, Employee Assistance Programme and the National AIDS Programme in the Ministry of Health and Social Development.

Source: Info-Prod Research (Middle East)

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