Erwida Maulia, Jakarta – Workplace discrimination remains an issue for people with HIV/AIDS, with most companies still refusing to employ HIV-positive job seekers, and about half considering the condition an acceptable excuse for job termination, a study revealed Tuesday.
In its recent study on HIV/AIDS in the workplace, the International Labor Organization found 82 percent of companies surveyed would reject new recruits found to be HIV/AIDS positive, 60 percent would list an HIV/AIDS-negative status as a prerequisite for career advancement, and 50 percent would cite the medical condition as grounds for job termination.
"Like it or not, discrimination in the workplace for employees living with HIV/AIDS still exists," ILO official Tauvik Muhamad told a discussion in Jakarta on Tuesday.
"Looking at sectors in detail, there is an indication relatively more companies in the manufacturing, oil, gas and mining, and hospitality sectors cite HIV/AIDS-positive status as a reason for job termination." The study, completed in November, was conducted by the ILO and research firm Taylor Nelson Sofres. It involved 803 companies in the four provinces with the highest recorded rates of HIV/AIDS infections: Jakarta, East Java, Riau Islands and Papua.
Most of the companies surveyed were private domestic companies in the trading, manufacturing and construction sectors.
The ILO issued its Code of Practice on HIV/AIDS and the World of Work in 2001, which was later adopted by the Indonesian government through a 2003 tripartite commitment between the government, businesses and workers' unions. The Manpower and Transmigration Ministry also issued a decree in 2004 on the matter.
The study, however, shows only a small number of companies have adopted these policies; only 25 percent are aware of the ILO Code of Practice, 16 percent are aware of the 2003 tripartite commitment, and 30 percent are aware of the ministerial decree.
It further revealed 97 percent of the companies considered HIV/AIDS a serious problem in Indonesia, and nearly half saw it as a threat to their performance, claiming productivity, absenteeism, recruitment and training expenses, as well as medical expenditure were affected the most.
The survey concluded most companies did not pay enough attention in dealing with HIV/AIDS. Approximately 91 percent did not allocate a regular budget for prevention of the disease, and only 29 percent provided regular health checks for employees, of which only 31 percent included an HIV/AIDS test.
Shinta Widjaja Kamdani, chairwoman of the Indonesian Business Coalition on AIDS, said companies needed to see the impact of HIV/AIDS on their businesses before they would consider it a serious problem that had to be addressed.
Sofjan Wanandi, chairman of the Indonesian Employers Association, added businesses needed a "government push" to tackle the problem more seriously.
ILO data shows 25 percent of the 33 million people living with HIV/AIDS worldwide are workers.