The impact of South African labour unions in workplace HIV/AIDS programmes

Abstract

The threat of HIV/AIDS on humanity still remains one of the most challenging issues of our time. In South Africa, labour unions play a significant role in the economy. Their role in the fight against HIV/AIDS is therefore vital in workplace HIV/AIDS programmes. The research objective was to identify the impact that the partnership between business and labour unions is having in these programmes. The role that labour unions play is also assessed.The first phase of the interviews entailed conducting face to face semistructured interviews with fifteen large companies based in Gauteng province employing a minimum of 1000 employees. All the companies were and had to have union representation amongst their staff members. Phase two of the interviews involved interviewing representatives from the three largest labour unions in South Africa. The findings clearly show that labour unions have a role to play in the fight against the pandemic. It is evident that they are to a large extent being successful in their identified roles. The impact of the partnership between labour unions and business has resulted in the objectives of the HIV/AIDS programmes being met. Areas for improvement are also suggested as the battle is yet to be won. Copyright