In the wake of World AIDS Day on Saturday, the Trades Union Congress has launched a campaign to combat the discrimination that still exists in the UK workplace regarding the infection.
Alongside the global pandemic, 70,000 people are HIV positive in the UK and TUC called the workplace a “key battleground” because HIV is suffered disproportionately by people of working age.
And although discrimination on grounds of HIV infection is illegal under the Disability Discrimination Act – many people living with HIV face unfair treatment at work, according to the TUC.
A recent survey found that majority of workers living with HIV still felt unable to tell their employer about their condition, despite increased legal protection.
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Brendan Barber, general secretary at the TUC said: “With a year-on-year increase in the numbers of people with HIV in the UK, and with the majority of those of working age, there is no room for complacency among employers.
“That is why the TUC calls for an HIV and AIDS policy to be adopted in all workplaces,” he said.
