AIDS is your business

Nearly 7 million people are infected with HIV/AIDS in Asia and the Pacific region, the great majority of them employees in their most productive age.
Every day, approximately 14,000 persons globally are newly infected with HIV. 6,000 of these newly infected people are between 15 and 24 years old and make up future well educated and high-qualified labor supply.

In Thailand for example, at least 670,000 people are living with HIV/AIDS, of whom more than 85% are in their productive working age. It is estimated that more than 50% of these persons are employed in the private sector.

From these numbers it is concluded that HIV/AIDS has a direct social and economic impact on business, as well as national economic development.

1. Impact on macro-econmic level

The HIV/AIDS pandemic not only destabilizes societies and consumer markets, but also depletes human resources, threatens occupational safety, pressures social protection systems and undermines national investments. As it reduces business' profitability, it has a potential negative impact on a country's tax base and economic growth.

2. Impact on company level

Negative effects on the workplace include: loss of skills and institutional knowledge, declining morale among staff and potential workplace conflicts as a result of stigmatisation and discrimination.

Besides these negative effects, serious workplace disruptions occur, such as in:

- Cambodia, where fearful workers refuse to work with colleagues rumored to have HIV.
- Singapore, where uninformed supervisors terminate staff rumored to have HIV.
- Thailand, where production line stoppages occur due to fear of HIV transmission.
- Asia, where compulsory HIV testing still is very common in many companies, resulting in employee fear and affecting work performance.

Declining productivity and rising costs

On the individual company level, productivity is reduced, due to the loss of skilled and experienced workers. Profitability is affected as a result of increased labour costs related to:

- rising absenteeism and early retirement;
- increased staff turnover;
- higher costs to recruit, hire and train new employees;
- higher health, life and safety insurance coverages;
- increased medical expenses and funeral costs.

It thus can be concluded that it simply makes sound business sense to protect your workplace and community in which you operate by educating workers and providing access to prevention services.

Besides above mentioned economic rationale, there exist several other arguments why HIV/AIDS is a business issue.

An international epidemic with a human face

HIV/AIDS is a human issue - affecting people, their livelihoods and their hopes for the future... As a compassionate employer you probably want to take care of your company's most valuable resources... your people. Indirectly, it will protect your company from possible bad publicity, which may severely harm your public image.

A shared commitment: employers and employees

The responsibility to protect occupational health and safety is a shared one: both the employee and the employer must make efforts to create and protect a healthy and productive workplace. Workplaces can become vital partners in promoting the message that there is no danger in working together.

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)

Managing HIV/AIDS in your own workplace is a natural thing to do. It shows a business' commitment to its responsibilities toward the society from which it profits. However, more importantly, CSR is not only the 'right thing' to do, but it is also the 'best thing' to do to make your business prosper. Managing HIV/AIDS creates goodwill among company's stakeholders, such as: employees, their families and consumers, as well as buyers. This will thus create a positive effect on sales.

Some call it 'Corporate Social Responsibility', we just call it 'good management'. To contribute to your community's wellfare and well-
being is to build a solid and positive reputation in your markets.