LASG urges food employers to end HIV discrimination

The Lagos State AIDS Control Agency has warned food-sector employers against excluding workers living with HIV on food-safety grounds, saying the virus cannot be transmitted through preparing, handling or serving food.

LSACA made the position known at a sensitisation meeting for food handlers and representatives of food-sector associations on HIV-related workplace practices and applicable legal provisions, held on Thursday in Ikeja.

According to a statement by the agency’s Head of Public Affairs, Adekunbi Bakare, the meeting was aimed at dispelling misconceptions about HIV transmission and promoting safe, inclusive and non-discriminatory practices in the food sector.

The Chief Executive Officer of LSACA, Folakemi Animashaun, represented at the meeting by the Director of Projects, Michael Essien, said there was no scientific basis for excluding people living with HIV from food-related employment.

The statement quoted Animashaun as saying that HIV was not transmitted through “handling, preparing or serving food, sharing utensils, or through ordinary workplace and social contact.”

According to her, “a person’s HIV status does not make them a food-safety risk,” and workplace decisions should therefore be based on scientific evidence rather than fear or misinformation.

She also cautioned against using food-safety and medical fitness requirements to justify discriminatory HIV screening or the exclusion of workers living with the virus.

The agency said protecting confidentiality was equally important, particularly where employers or workplace health personnel had access to information about a worker’s HIV status.

Animashaun said stigma and discrimination could have consequences beyond the workplace, including discouraging people from getting tested, accessing treatment or using health services for fear that their status could be disclosed or that they could lose their jobs.

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She, therefore, urged food establishments and associations to review their workplace policies and ensure compliance with the principles of confidentiality, informed consent and non-discrimination.

“Stigma and discrimination can discourage people from testing, accessing treatment and using health services for fear of losing their jobs or having their status disclosed without consent,” she said.

Animashaun also called on the participants to become advocates for accurate information about HIV within the food sector, urging them to take the message back to employers, workers and members of their respective associations.

The agency said the sensitisation also addressed HIV transmission, prevention and treatment, with participants reminded that there was no risk of acquiring HIV from food prepared, handled or served by a person living with the virus.

Also speaking at the meeting, Tiamiyu Hussein of the Lagos State Safety Commission stressed the need to maintain safe and healthy workplaces without discriminating against workers based on their HIV status.

Hussein explained the distinction between legitimate medical fitness assessments for food handlers and HIV screening, urging employers to ensure that occupational health and safety procedures were properly implemented.

He also encouraged employers and workers to protect the confidentiality of health information and ensure that no person was subjected to unfair treatment because of their HIV status.

The agency urged food-sector stakeholders to challenge misconceptions, promote fair employment practices and support appropriate referral and grievance mechanisms across the sector.

Bakare said the agency remained committed to promoting accurate information on HIV and reducing stigma and discrimination against people living with the virus.