Ethics and AIDS in the Workplace - Essay Example

?Topic:  Ethics and AIDS in the Workplace Answer to question one African Gold Inc. did not make a right decision by neglecting the workers suffering from AIDS. A company has the full obligation to protect the employees who are working for them. AIDS is a dreadful disease and a company has all the responsibility and obligation to educate, protect and support their employees and family when victimized by AIDS. However, most companies are unwilling, unable or unprepared to handle the problem related to AIDS. The Aids epidemics raises three kinds of ethical issues: First, there are issues of rights both human and civil. Two rights are of special importance here: right to privacy and right to work. The right to privacy grants a presumption of confidentiality in regard to health records, financial, job evaluation and performance records. The right to work include the right to not to be discriminated in compensation, sex, color, religion or race. Secondly comes the issue of public health. The companies have an obligation to protect the employees in the work place from disease and unnecessary physical hazard. Third there are issues of social ethics. What is our commitment to the fair treatment and justice of all members of the society? Framing these issues two questions can be rises as: Is AIDS really communicable in work place? The other is legal: what legal protection do employees with Aids have? This issue has to be considered to find out the ethical implication of this disease on the employees of a company. How communicable Unlike most transmissible diseases AIDS is not transmitted through sneezing, eating, drinking from common utensils, or merely through being around an infected person. All scientific facts so far indicate that transmission is not possible through causal personal contact. Because of the difficulty to transmission AIDS is an easily avoidable disease. Risk of contagion is proportional to highly risky behavior. One has about as much chance of catching AIDS in the work place as of catching cancer or multiple sclerosis. Although AIDS is health issue for business, as well as a legal and moral issue, it is not a contagion issue. Businesses should not allow fear and ignorance to disrupt the work place. According to (Kanengoni 10621-28)“Low morality among the employees, fear and death due to HIV/AIDS may lead to suspicion and lack of tolerance of colleagues infected by the disease”. Legal Protection For employees, the only worse thing than having AIDS is losing in the work place one’s job because of it. In 1970s, AIDS victims had few legal rights or unambiguous remedies in regard to their status in work place. An employee is not terminated from work unless his job performance is affected by the disease. While no company is legally obligated to hire workers with AIDS business cannot refuse to hire an individual because of his disease. The companies should handle the issue of AIDS with flexibility. Each case of AIDS is different and should be dealt on individual basis. The same rule applies to all workers despite the fact whether the disease is cancer, AIDS or heart attack. The companies should develop, publish and implement a special policy on AIDS. The basic posture of very AIDS policy in the work place must be educational. Company obligation on AIDS affected employees The problem with HIV / AIDS in the work place is not just the productivity loss from illness, but the fear of the disease by co –workers, which can result in violence, discrimination, and harassment from other employees and customers. A case of HIV/ AIDS is a serious issue for everyone concerned, and the complexity of the potential management problem which can arise requires the companies develop multi – dimensional policies to deal with it effectively. This should cover issues such as education and communication programs to inform staff of risks and potential hazards of ; universal precaution to avoid contamination, such as cleaning protocols, personal protective equipment,, etc ; control plans to minimize exposure and the spread of infection; record keeping system of the all possible incidents. As per (Chimbetete 11-19)“There is no law which binds organizations to have HIV and AIDS training programmers for employees in South Africa”. A company in case of HIV/ AIDS effected employee must go beyond legally mandated benefits to help them. Human resources personnel and managers in general must be prepared to deal effectively with HIV/AIDS. Human reserve manager should react to the changed environment through the HIV disease. A company should allow an AIDS effected employee to continue in the employment. He should also be protected against the discrimination at work place .The employee should also be given adequate information to deal with the disease without fear and anxiety. Employee should also be given information on services like employee assistance program, which offers counseling and referral to appropriate community organizations, and the medical and other benefits offered by the company to employee and their dependants. After the consultation with medical expert, and in view of the seriousness of AIDS, as well as its potential impact on staff, the company should give serious attention and co- operation regarding this issue. AIDS effected employees should be fully entitled to the ethical consideration and legal rights awarded than anyone with any other illness. This includes protection of their privacy, confidentiality and civil liberties. The disease should be considered as any medical problem with attendant absence and disability. The company is committed to maintain a safe and healthy work environment for all employees. Employees who are affected by AIDS should be treated with compassion and support should be given to fullest extent possible in dealing with their personal crisis. The anti –discrimination laws have the biggest potential impact on the company’s handling of employees with AIDS. The company should also provide a reasonable accommodation for AIDS victims, such as minor reconstructing of the job and time rescheduling. In south Africa employees are highly uneducated, so they should be educated well in advance about the ill effects of unprotected sex and AIDS. Once the company acknowledge of AIDS in a patient, then it should take all measure to protect the employee and their dependants. In case of death the company should take care of their funeral expense and also compensation should be given to their families accordingly. Law pertaining to AIDS issue A) Employment Equity Act i) Protection of employees who are HIV positive In terms of section 6 of the Employee Equity Act, unfair discrimination against an employee or the harassment of that employee due to his HIV/ AIDS status is strictly prohibited. The dismissal of HIV affected person is also treated as unfair dismissal in terms of the Labor relations Act. In addition, medical testing is made subject to very stringent requirements in the Employee Equity Act, which will make it more difficult for an employer to justify the testing of employees or job applicant for their HIV status. ii) People with disabilities: According to this act “people with disabilities” that is physical or mental impairment should be given reasonable accommodation, modified working environment and equal opportunity. What is “reasonable accommodation will be determined by the size and resources of the employer, the nature of the job and the nature and disability of the employee? Here since the African Gold Inc. is not in a very good financial state they should provide facilities to the AIDS affected employee in a reasonable way. iii) Labor Relation Act :All employees have the right not to be unfairly dismissed according to the section 185 of the Labor Relation Act of 1995.This principle does not allow for any exceptions and is equally applicable to the individuals who had AIDS or who is HIV positive. iv) Code of good practice :This code was published on 1 December 2000 and contains useful guidelines and legal requirements for employers, trade unions and employees who grapple with the HIV/AIDS pandemic. Answer to question two African Gold Inc as a mining company has certain responsibilities towards its employees who are AIDS infected. The employees who are HIV positive need the following from the management. Assistance with access to health services outside the work place if these are not available in the work place Time off from work to attend clinics or counseling. Transfer to lighter or less stressful duties, where it is both necessary and possible. When employees are no longer able to work, they should be compensated a minimum amount. The families of employees who die due to AIDS should be compensated by the company The funeral expenses of the dead employee should be taken care by the company. The employer should also make sure that the medical details of the employee are kept disclosed. It is the responsibility of the employer to ensure that all the employees or future employees with HIV/AIDS have the same rights as any other employee. The company should in no case, dismiss the employee on the knowledge of the disease of the employee. In order to educate employees and to create an awareness of the pandemic, the employer has the following responsibility: To execute the company policy on HIV/AIDS To implement a work place programmed i) Executing the company policy on HIV/AIDS The employer must make sure that all members of staff are aware of and understand the content of the company policy. He/she must also make sure that all employees comply with this policy. If the policy is not followed, the appropriate actions must be taken. New employees must be made aware of the policy. ii) Implementing the work place programmed This work place programmed must be designed together with staff members so that the programmed can be successful. It is very important that there is buying – in from all levels within the organization. Involvement of the employees and management also contributes to everyone needs being covered. In order to create a positive atmosphere in the workplace, it is a good idea to provide employees with access to counseling and refer them to the appropriate facilities, i.e.clinics, hospitals, etc. The organization may also employ counselors who will provide the necessary assistance at the work place. Company responsibility with regard to protection and education A) Infection Control To protect the health and safety of the employees, all of them will be required to undergo orientation and training in universal precautions (infection control policies and procedures). These policies and procedures include: body substance precaution, needle stick, mandatory reporting and evaluation of exposures. Employees who feel they may have been exposed to AIDS on the job should be required to report the incident immediately. If required these employees must be tested for AIDS. If they test positive, they will be removed from positions involving the risk of blood -to –blood contact with patients and other employees. Employees who are AIDS positive will not be restricted from work duties unless he is not susceptible to infection in coming in contact to work. B) Education All current and new employees and supervisors should be given education on the following points AIDS cannot be transmitted or contracted in workplace. AIDS is a fatal illness which cannot be transmitted or contracted through routine workplace contact. Nor can it be transmitted through any other means except sexual relation, intravenous drug use, a transfusion from infected blood, or from an infected mother to her child. AIDS victims are legally entitled to handicap protection. AIDS is a handicap .Employees with AIDS are entitled to retain their jobs provided they can With reasonable accommodation, perform them satisfactorily. It is illegal to discriminate against employees on the basis of their being AIDS carriers.Harrassment of AIDS victims by co – workers or supervisors is not only illegal, but subjects the employer to punitive damages for allowing discriminations against handicapped persons to occur. Employees and supervisors will be disciplined if they harass co – workers who have AIDS. Co – workers of AIDS employees will not be transferred or re- assigned. Because AIDS is not contagious from employees to co – workers or clients in the workplace, and because isolation or discipline of AIDS victims is a violation of their handicap rights, request for transfer or reassignment of co – workers of AIDS victims who fear that they will infect will not be granted. The employees who refuse to work with them will be subject to disciplinary action. The company will provide AIDS victim benefits like: light duty positions, medical benefits and financial assistance. The company will maintain the medical records confidential. Other release of information for any reason for what so ever is a violation of company policy. Employees or supervisor who releases them will be subjected to disciplinary action, including termination. Voluntary disclosure enables AIDS victims to get better treatment and hold their jobs longer. Prompt detection and treatment can save their lives. Effective HIV/AIDS policies should cover and provide guidelines on compliance of with law, non discrimination, confide -utility and privacy, safety ,performance standards, reasonable accommodation, co – worker concerns and employee education. In order to be effective, a policy must be communicated to employees at every level of the company. Moreover, it is crucial to have the outspoken, highly visible support of upper –level management and executives, including the chief executive, in reinforcing the urgency and importance of the message outlined by the company. In the journal (Beer 56 -61) states that, “HIV predominantly affects adults of working age. On a global scale, the majority of these adults live in sub-Saharan Africa, where Namibia is among the countries hardest hit by the epidemic”. Workplace based education programmers are inexpensive and cost – effective ways to minimize risk, protect worker’s lives, save money on health care costs and save lives. Ideally, attendance at employee education sessions should be mandatory, and the programmers should last at least one and half hours. Moreover the employees should also introduce to precautionary measure while having sexual relations. References Beer, Ingrid D. "Anonymous HIV workplace surveys as an advocacy tool for affordable private health insurance in Namibia." Journal of International AIDS society 12.32 Nov. (2009): 56-61. Print. Chimbetete, Muchineyi. "Impact of a Workplace-based HIV and AIDS Risk Reduction Training Intervention." School of Humanity and Community Development 35.1 (2011): 11-19. Print. Kanengoni, Herbert. "The perceptions of employees towards working with HIV/AIDS infected and affected co-workers: A case of food services industry in Eastern Cape, South Africa." African Journal of Business Management 5.2628 Oct. (2011): 10621-28. Print. Read More