Work it out

The workplace can be a battlefield. Stress, deadlines, co-workers and infuriating bosses can all combine to make nine to five a difficult time. But, when you’re diagnosed with HIV, it suddenly gets a lot more complex.

It’s difficult to talk about exact numbers, but an estimated 30,000 men live with HIV in the UK. Almost half of them reside in London and the vast majority of them work.

Being positive is not something you have to tell your employers unless you work in a medical field, so the decision to inform your co-workers is a delicate one.

Understandably, most employees chose to keep quiet.
Markus, 40, is one of them. He lives in London and was diagnosed with HIV 12 years ago.

“My employers do know about my HIV status, but it’s literally down to one person in the HR,” he said. “They have a policy where, if anybody talks about confidential information, specifically about HIV, they would face disciplinary action.

“I’m out at work in terms of being gay, but I’m not out as being HIV+ as I would fear the reaction of the people around me, and naturally I wouldn’t want them to treat me differently. None of my friends who are positive are out at work. They fear, if they told, they wouldn’t be put up for promotion. The one person at work who knows, who is also an old acquaintance, said to me ‘Oh, you’d better not do any first aid then.’ They shouldn’t have said it and they’re OK with it now, but it took them five years to come to terms with it. That’s a realistic prospect we all face.”

The Disability Discrimination Act, 2005, defines all those living with HIV as disabled, which means that people living with HIV are protected from discrimination in employment, trade union membership, education and the provision of goods, services and facilities. And whilst most HIV positive people would not classify themselves as disabled, the scheme is a safety net for those who decide to reveal their status, but are dreading the consequences.

But is this enough to encourage people to be open about their status – or are they committing professional suicide?

“My medical appointments and taking medication are the awkward bits,” he continued. “I used to say I had high cholesterol and was regularly going for tests, until someone mentioned how many I’d had. I’m lucky because I don’t need to be in the office before 10am, but we have a new boss now and she wants us to come in earlier.

“I worry about it because, if she tries to force the issue, I’ll have to go to HR. But then I’ll have to explain myself to everybody and I really don’t want to do that...quite frankly, I wouldn’t advise anyone to come out as being HIV+.”

Ronan Gallagher, 44, lives in Camden, North London takes another standpoint and is open about his HIV status. “I never went back to work full-time. I work at a hospital and everybody there knows; I never hid the fact that I’m positive. If they said I couldn’t work there, I would challenge them.”

“I think it’s important that you’re honest with people. If you fill in a job application you should put it down, but also mention that you live a healthy life. I made the decision to inform those who needed to know work-wise. I’m 6ft 2inches and skinny, so when I’m ill and I lose weight it shows really quickly; if I was off work for a few days, they’d understand, it would be OK. So I have this support.”

Employees like Gallagher also have the legal backing of the Disability Equality Scheme, which was introduced in 2006 to ensure the needs of positive people are met and that services do not discriminate against them. The scheme advises companies to develop and publish their HIV policies online so possible employees have access to them.

One HIV-positive man we interviewed felt obliged to disclose such details because his job application form requested it. Later, he discovered he did not have to discuss such sensitive and personal details.

In a perfect world, each company should make sure they promote positive attitudes towards people living with HIV and take immediate action if there are any signs of discrimination. However, reality tends to bite and some immediate adjustments will definitely be needed if any progress is to be made.

Often, when a person changes their drug regime, it might lead to various side effects but it’s worth mentioning that at any time, one third of HIV+ people is not taking any medicine as they do not need it.

The significance of this suggests that people with HIV need more visible displays of support from employers, managers and job centres – including confirmation that status is not essential to a successful career. These messages should be displayed throughout company literature and in human resorces packs, not hidden away to become a grey area for people to muse over.

According to the Health Protection Agency, a vast majority of people - up to 80 per cent – would not have a problem working with a colleague who is HIV positive.

This indicates that attitudes are changing and those who are living with HIV should know that and ultimately make their own decision.