Inside views: Perspectives from around the sector
STEPS FORWARD IN THE PORTS
We have conducted many workshops on HIV/AIDS awareness for dock workers, as well as for road transport and contract workers.
Mumbai Port has 305 registered cases of HIV, though the actual number may be higher. Our union has been working on HIV since 2001. The Mumbai Port Trust organisation has now instituted an HIV/AIDS awareness programmes coordination committee comprising seven heads of department alongside trade union representatives, including myself. Its main purpose is to frame and adopt a workplace policy for HIV/AIDS, and it will also meet every three months to monitor and review the HIV/AIDS programmes.
With the support of other ITF affiliates, such as the National Union of Seafarers of India, we have conducted many workshops in Mumbai for dock workers, as well as for road transport and contract workers. Up to 2000 workers have participated so far.
One major challenge is the difficulty of keeping track of shift and short contract workers. Another is our lack of suitable audio-visual materials. Many workers are illiterate and sometimes we encounter language barriers with migrant workers.
There are times when workers do not feel able to attend our sessions even though they are interested, because they may be afraid of losing payment or leave.
Generally they are not very open to discussing the issues we raise in public, though we have found they are very curious to know more. If they have questions they will come and ask them separately at the end of workshop. We feel there is an urgent need to organise many more awareness raising campaigns.
By Kalpana Desai, ITF/ILO educator and vice president of the Transport and Dock Worker’s Union, based in Mumbai
AIRLINE EQUALITY
The employer helped make his life easier when he was able to work, and supported him when he was off
At Air Canada, information about workers’ specific illnesses is not available to the employer. Each of the unions handles their own disability plan. We have union trustees who may be aware if a member is denied benefits, because there is an appeal process that takes it to the trustees. But the information is confidential and would not be shared with the union executive.
With Canadian Airlines, which merged with Air Canada in 2000, we had a few members who were HIV positive and then developed AIDS. They were handled like other employees with a disability.
When they were off sick they qualified for long-term disability benefits, and when they were able to work they did so. The union was involved usually when there were issues that could have resulted in discipline. For example one member experienced behavioural disorders, which became obvious once at the airport when he was walking through it and was on duty. His behaviour was completely out of character and we were able to argue that he had been adversely affected by the medication he was on. He was relocated to another workplace on the base. It was still within our bargaining unit and there was no drop in pay or benefits.
We have sometimes been involved in getting people help with the psychological impact their illness has had on them. One of the managers in the labour relations department was HIV positive for many years, before developing AIDS and then dying a few years ago. He had never made any secret of his illness and the employer did all they could to make his work life easier when he was able to work, and supported him when he was off.
By Anne Davidson of the National Auto-mobile, Aerospace Transportation and General Workers Union of Canada (CAW)
SUPPORTING WOMEN IN THE RAILWAYS
Even where a woman suspects her husband is going with another woman, it is difficult for her to initiate condom use
I was trained by the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung foundation and the ITF in Italy in 2002 in occupational health and safety, with a special focus on HIV and AIDS.
Since then we have trained peer educators and held training of trainers and we now have a programme on the sensitisation of women workers, where we discuss issues related to sex and sexually transmitted infections and their implications for HIV and AIDS.
We also sensitise on voluntary counselling and testing to our union members and workers generally. We conduct outreach activities within our communities, because in Kenya Railways we have estates where all our workers and their families live together.
We use films as a way of educating the community. We especially use the film known as the Silent Epidemic that brings a lot of impact from what they see and hear in the film. We also have discussions at the workplaces on Tuesdays and Thursdays, where our employer has given us the afternoon to go and talk to the workers and also hear from them, so that we are able to plan and know what problems they have.
It is not an easy task. I have my employer’s other duties to perform. But it is a good job, especially when you know that you are saving people’s lives. I get satisfaction when I am talking to people, mostly about HIV and AIDS.
Even where a woman suspects the husband to be going with other women, it is difficult for her to initiate condom use. However, a woman needs to think about her life and her children. The time for assuming that the male spouse is a saint and the female is the devil is over and women should demand condom use even in marriages.
Women need to be strong and wise in this era of HIV and AIDS and openly speak to their spouses about safer sex. Women have to come out and raise our voices and speak and say no to a man who goes out and has multiple sexual partners and then turns around to behave like he is a saint.
By Florence Wanjiru Theuri, Kenya Railway Workers’ Union
