Private businesses slowly responding to HIV/AIDS workplace policy – Coalition
Private enterprises and industrial sectors do not seem to appreciate the potential devastating impact that the HIV/AIDS epidemic can have on productivity which is worrying, Mr Sanjay Rughani, Chairman of the Executive Council of the Ghana Business Coalition Against AIDS (GBCA) has said.
He said, “While civil society has clearly demonstrated its concern in the national response to fight HIV&AIDS, unfortunately, employers and employees alike have not shown sufficient concern in workplace policy development and programmes.”
Mr Rughani made these remarks during the GBCA Advocacy Meeting held in Accra last Thursday to build the capacity of workplace implementers to identify the key elements of developing HIV&AIDS policy to guide employers and promote the wellbeing of employees.
The Coalition mobilizes and empowers the Ghana Business Community to take effective action on HIV and AIDS in the workplace and beyond.
Mr Rughani noted that HIV&AIDS is a workplace issue because it affected workers and enterprises – cutting the workforce by up to 30 per cent in some countries, increasing labor costs and reducing productivity.
He said recognizing the link between workplaces and the surrounding communities, business also had a role to play in the wider struggle to beat the epidemic.
“The fundamental rights of workers infected and affected by the pandemic are severely compromised due to the pervasive discrimination and stigmatization that such workers face.
“By joining forces to fight against the pandemic, we can help to unlock the political, legal and institutional barriers that increase people’s vulnerability to infection and hinder people living with HIV from accessing the services that they need to survive,” Mr Rughani said.
He said it was essential for Private Sector Business to have collective strengths and voices to make a real contribution to implementation of the workplace policy and programmes. This, he said, was the reason for the birth of GBCA.
“It is our responsibility as the private sector to take action and join forces with the public sector in addressing these pandemics. By actively engaging our companies in workplace policies that address HIV&AIDS and other related diseases, we enrich and empower the Ghanaian workforce to address issues on stigma and discrimination.” Mr Rughani said.
Mr Yaw Frimpong of the Private Enterprise Foundation in a presentation on improving business practices through developing workplace wellness/HIV/AIDS policy and programme noted that currently only 30 percent of private sector businesses had workplace policy and programme in Ghana.
He said the fight against HIV/AIDS largely depended on the need for people to know their status.
“Where we are now in the fight against HIV/AIDS, the most important thing is to know your status. If we are not achieving this, then we are losing the battle for the disease.”
Source: GNA