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Unions celebrate adoption of ILO Recommendation on AIDS and the World of Work

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Unions celebrate adoption of ILO Recommendation on AIDS and the World of Work

Mark Lazarowicz'There has been significant progress in the fight against the pandemic with fewer new infections and more people living longer with HIV in developing countries', said Mark Lazarowicz MP, Shadow Minister for International Development, in his address to the TUC Seminar on the ILO Recommendation on AIDS and the World of Work held in Congress House on the World AIDS Day 1st December. The seminar which brought together trade unionists, government officials and interested NGOs provided an opportunity to focus on the role of the workplace in the fight against the disease.

Annie Watson, TUC Advisor on international development who chaired the Seminar, in her opening remarks, said that the event was a celebration of the adoption of the Recommendation on HIV/AIDS and the World of Work (R200) by the ILO in June 2010 and that the R200 was an important international instrument likely to bring about far-reaching changes to workplace policies and practices throughout the world and that the Seminar had the twin objective of examining its implications for current workplace policies and practices and of exploring how it could be effectively implemented in the UK and abroad.

Kay Carberry, TUC Assistant General Secretary, in her welcome address to the Seminar, said that the adoption of the Recommendation by the ILO Conference was the culmination of a long and arduous campaign led by the international trade union movement with the support of their colleagues at national level for the recognition of the role of workplace in combating the disease and coping with its consequences. She pointed out that the Recommendation helped to address prevention through equal and universal access to Voluntary Counselling and Testing, treatment and care and through the creation of a secure and enabling environment by ensuring job security irrespective of HIV status. Referring to the TUC Aid workplace initiatives on HIV/AIDS in Nigeria, Ghana and Uganda, she said that, under TUC Aid workplace initiatives, over 3,000 trade union officials had received training in the preventive aspects of the disease as well as in the protection and promotion of employment and human rights of those affected by HIV/AIDS.

Stewart BrownStewart Brown, Executive Council Member of the Fire Brigades Union (FBU), in a detailed presentation to the Seminar said that the coverage of the R200 was comprehensive, ranging from persons in any employment or occupation to armed forces, that the Recommendation dealt with national policies and programmes and that there were specific provisions relating to the implementation through social dialogue, education, training, information, consultation etc. He underscored the importance of follow-up action by all stakeholders and said the effective implementation of the Recommendation hinged on the availability of adequate resources as well as on a credible global plan of action and an effective monitoring and reporting mechanism.

Esther OgunfoworaEsther Ogunfowora, Coordinator of the Building Trade Union Capacity to Combat HIV/AIDS in Nigeria Project, in her address to the Seminar underlined the importance of the ILO Recommendation on HIV/AIDS for workplaces in Africa. She said that only a few countries had developed workplace policies in Africa, that even those policies were often out of date and needed to be brought into line with the R200 and that there were no effective implementation strategies or plans in place. She informed the participants that the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) had already made representations to the Ministry of Labour and Productivity on the Recommendation, detailed the action plan agreed by the NLC in this regard and that the NLC -TUC Project had been instrumental in strengthening trade union capacity to respond to the consequences of the disease in Nigeria.

Mark Lazarowicz MP, Shadow Minister for International Development, stressed the developmental challenges posed by the pandemic, pointed out that significant progress had been made in the battle against AIDS and agreed that much remained to be done at both global and national level. He added that only about a third of those diagnosed with HIV were under treatment, that more people needed to have access to treatment, care and support and that substantial resources had to be found if the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) were to be achieved in relation to HIV/AIDS. The Shadow Minister emphasized that the financial crisis had led to a drop in the resources available for combating AIDS, that worsening poverty in the developing world contributed to the spread of the disease and that more opportunities for education of children in countries like Swaziland would go a long way in coping with the economic and social consequences of the pandemic in Africa.

Discussing issuesIn discussion, a number of issues - impact of the pandemic on women, disclosure and its possible implications for employment, mobilisation of resources at national level and sustainability of current workplace initiatives - were raised. It was said that there was considerable interest in, and support for, workplace initiatives, that unions had to raise funds for the continuation of programmes and that they were already working in close collaboration with government agencies and civil society organisations in Nigeria. Polly Jones, International Officer (Unison) and Zuzanna Muskat-Gorska, Global HIV/AIDS Coordinator (ITUC), in their presentations as panellists, made specific reference to good practice in the international trade union movement and emphasized the need for their replication. Sarah Radcliffe, Policy Officer, National AIDS Trust (NAT), in her presentation, told the participants that research in the UK pointed to the need for the unions to play a more active role in dissemination of information on HIV/AIDS through workplace.

Annie Watson, Chair, in her closing remarks, stressed the need for follow-up action on the Recommendation and for technical cooperation with the ILO and other relevant bodies in its implementation at national level.

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