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HIV/AIDS Stigma in the Workplace
Fall 2004
By Jesse Milan, Jr., JD
Jesse Milan, Jr., is vice president for health communications at Constella Group, an international contract firm, where he serves as director of the CDC Business and Labor Resource Service. Mr. Milan has lectured extensively across the U.S. and in six African nations on HIV/AIDS issues. He is the current co-chair of the CDC Business and Labor Responds to AIDS Partners Board as well as the current co-chair of the CDC and HRSA Advisory Committee on HIV and STD Prevention and Treatment, appointed by HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson.
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Virtually every working person in America and the world today knows of HIV/AIDS. These days, people with HIV/AIDS are living longer than ever. Medical treatments and advancements allow these individuals to either remain at work and/or return to work should they take medical leave. Yet more than 20 years into the HIV/AIDS epidemic and with nearly one million Americans living with HIV/AIDS, the American workplace is still remarkably quiet about HIV/AIDS. Stigma is a main reason.
Stigma can be manifested in many forms, either subtle or overt. All forms of stigma may be illegal, however, particularly when they create discriminatory workplace environments or result in discriminatory actions, such as firing or rejection. The absence of positive approaches to HIV/AIDS also promotes stigma. By not affirmatively addressing or supporting educational programs and healthcare initiatives concerning HIV/AIDS, workplaces allow stigma to flourish.
Workplace policies and programs that address HIV/AIDS can reduce the stigma of the disease and create positive environments where people living with, or affected by, HIV/AIDS can be productive, contributing members of the workforce and their communities. Policies must go hand-in-hand with programs. Ongoing workforce HIV/AIDS training programs for managers and all levels of employees loudly proclaim that HIV/AIDS stigma is not welcome in the workplace.
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