U.S. Embassy Policy on HIV/AIDS

December 2, 2004

Policy objectives are:

• To provide a non-discriminatory working environment for all employees.
   
• To provide staff with guidelines on how to handle various issues relating to HIV/AIDS in the
  U.S. Mission.
   
• To provide information to staff and their families on how they can protect themselves from contracting HIV/AIDS.
   
• To inform employees/dependents living with HIV/AIDS on how they can be assisted by the U.S. Mission to remain healthful and productive for many years.
   
• This policy applies to U.S. direct hire personnel, personal services contractors, and locally-hired employees (Indians, U.S. citizens and third country nationals) who work within the U.S. Mission. However, specific sections of the policy, such as care and support, apply only to locally-hired employees.

Key Elements of the Policy are:

• U.S. Mission employees with HIV infection or AIDS shall be given the same rights, benefits, and opportunities as employees with other serious illnesses.
   
• Employment practices shall be based on the scientific and epidemiological evidence that people with HIV/AIDS infection do not pose a risk of transmission of the virus to co-workers through ordinary workplace contact.
   
• The highest levels of Management shall unequivocally endorse nondiscriminatory employment practices and the Mission shall provide education and programs to disseminate information about HIV/AIDS.
   
• The U.S. Mission shall communicate HIV/AIDS workplace policies and practices to employees in simple, clear and unambiguous terms and shall provide employees with sensitive, accurate, and up-to-date information about risk-reduction in their personal lives.
   
• The U.S. Mission shall protect the confidentiality of employees' medical information.
   
• To prevent work disruption and rejection by co-workers of an employee with AIDS or HIV infection, the U.S. Mission shall undertake education of all employees.
   
• U.S. Mission employees are under no obligation to disclose their HIV status to anyone at work unless they are requesting reasonable accommodations for their condition. Medical information submitted to U.S. Agencies or to the U.S. Embassy Medical Unit shall be treated confidentially. The Privacy Act also covers medical information for U.S. citizens.

For more information, please review the complete text of the policy available on the U.S. Embassy website.