Can HIV/AIDS compete with bread and butter issues?

A total of 302 shop stewards from a representative sample of companies covering 10 sectors (manufacturing mining trade automotive agriculture transport finance hospital construction and hotel and hospitality) were interviewed telephonically. In all these workplaces the human resource managers were also interviewed. In addition site visits and in-depth interviews were conducted with employees in a telecommunications company to explore the contexts of and factors influencing worker involvement in HIV/AIDS. Drawing on shop steward functions around HIV/AIDS proposed by COSATU and the International Labour Organization (ILO) the findings were assessed against four items: 1) collective bargaining 2) workplace policies and programmes 3) preventing and monitoring discrimination and 4) peer education. Of the 302 shop stewards interviewed only 46 (15%) reported that their union discussed or negotiated about HIV/AIDS with employers. Similar to that reported by human resources managers 159 (52%) said they had an existing HIV/AIDS workplace policy although only 85 (28%) said that their union had been involved in the development of the HIV policy. (excerpt)