MOSCOW, 12 March, 2008. HIV/AIDS workplace prevention, nondiscrimination of people living with HIV, overcoming stigma and stereotypes, joint efforts by the government, unions and employers’ organizations in fighting the epidemic - these were the issues discussed yesterday at the final Dissemination Workshop of ILO/USDOL HIV/AIDS Workplace Education Programme in Russia. Speaking on behalf of the Russian Ministry of Health and Social Development, Viktor Kobzanenko, head of department a.i., expressed satisfaction with the project’s results.

“Four years ago this project was the first in a series of workplace programmes to address HIV/AIDS issues in Russia”, said H.E. Mr. William Joseph Burns, the Ambassador of the USA. The workplace has proved to be a very important place for HIV prevention and education. Nowadays all groups of the population are affected by the epidemic, which has spread beyond the so called risk groups. However, major efforts of the government and public organizations are still aimed at the risk groups and they do not cover the working population to the necessary extent. Meanwhile 80 % of HIV positive people are people of working age. Besides most workers have families, thus the HIV/AIDS problem affects the whole society.

Mikhail Shmakov, Chairman of the Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Russia, expressed the participants’ opinion: enterprises and organizations can become the most efficient channel to promote HIV/AIDS prevention and to fight the epidemic. HIV/AIDS Workplace Education Programme in Russia was implemented in two pilot regions – the Moscow oblast and Murmansk oblast. Project experts and trainers worked out methodologies to promote healthy lifestyles and tolerant attitude to people affected by the epidemic. The main idea was to prepare employers and workers to the fact that among their colleagues there may already be people infected or affected by HIV/AIDS.

Pilot enterprises in both regions represented different sectors of economy: sea and road transport, service sphere, media and others. This different specialization made it possible to shape project education methodology and adapt it to different working environments. An important aspect of the project was the involvement of peer educators - selected workers of pilot enterprises. Obviously it is much easier to discuss delicate issues such as HIV and to accept new ideas from someone whom you know well at work and whom you trust.

Another principle project approach was that it was encouraged by the initiative and experience of the workers themselves, who expressed their own ideas to trigger project implementation, provided great help in working out communication and educational materials such as posters and booklets united by a common message: Learn about it at work!

Ms. Elena Feoktistova from the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, stressed the importance of workplace education and methodology developed under the project. Such guidelines would allow enterprises interested in implementing new approaches to HIV/AIDS prevention to join the HIV/AIDS prevention efforts at the workplace, she said.

For more information about the Project please contact sinelina@ilo.org

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