Rights of HIV-Infected Staff
and Students
Can the Department of Education bar students infected with HIV from attending classes? Can HIV-infected employees be removed from their jobs?
No. Section 504 of the federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans
with Disabilities Act of 1990 protect the right of persons with HIV/AIDS
(which are considered disabling conditions under these laws) to continue
working as long as they are able to perform the essential functions of their
jobs. Under the same laws, students with HIV/AIDS have the right to attend
school and cannot be denied access to any educational opportunity for which
they would otherwise be qualified.
As we have seen, there is no reason to exclude students or personnel with
HIV/AIDS because they do not pose a danger to others in a school setting.
Does federal law provide any other protection for staff with HIV/AIDS?
Yes. In addition to protecting the right of people with HIV/AIDS to continue working, the Americans with Disabilities Act requires that employers provide reasonable accommodations to help disabled employees perform their jobs. Students with AIDS also are entitled to reasonable accommodations in their educational programs to enable them to continue attending classes. As described below, the UFT Committee for Members Who Are Capably Disabled can help staff with AIDS secure reasonable accommodations that will enable them to keep working.
What about the rights of staff who are not infected with HIV? Shouldn’t they be told whenever the Department of Education or school administration learns that colleagues or students are HIV-positive? Don’t staff members need this information so they can protect themselves?
Such a disclosure policy would be illegal. It also is unnecessary.
It would be illegal because the New York State Public Health Law explicitly
bars the disclosure of such confidential medical information in most circumstances.
Department of Education policy reinforces the legal mandate by explicitly prohibiting
school employees from disclosing information about a student’s HIV
status without the consent of the student or his/her parents/legal guardians.
In some cases information about HIV status may not even be disclosed to the
student’s parents. (See Chancellor’ Special Circular #37 of
May 19, 1993.)
Why did you say disclosure is unnecessary?
Disclosing the names of students or staff who are known to be HIV-positive is unnecessary because people infected with HIV pose no risk to fellow staff or students during normal school routines.
What about an accident involving loss of blood? Don’t other staff need to know who is HIV-positive so they can protect themselves?
There is no need to know who is infected if you assume that everybody’s
blood is contaminated with HIV and follow the universal precautions described
above. Those procedures will prevent transmission of the virus.
If you did have the names of a few students and/or staff who had tested positive
for HIV, you still would have to follow the safety procedures in all cases
because you wouldn’t know if everyone else was free of infection.
What if a teacher or student with AIDS develops a serious communicable illness like tuberculosis (TB)? Doesn’t he or she pose a threat to staff and students?
Any students or staff members with TB—whether or not they have AIDS—will be excluded from school until they are no longer contagious. There is no need to treat AIDS patients any differently from other staff/students in this regard.
UFT Services for HIV-Infected Staff
What is the UFT doing to assist members living with HIV/AIDS?
The union has specially trained staff who provide confidential and accurate
information to UFT members with HIV/AIDS. The service also is available to
spouses, domestic partners, parents and dependent children of UFT members.
In addition, as explained below, the UFT will do everything it can to assist
members to work for as long as they are able.
How does the UFT provide confidential information?
The UFT’s HIV/AIDS resource specialists are available by telephone
to assist people with questions about legal rights, confidentiality, insurance
coverage, medical bills and options such as leaves of absence, retirement
and disability retirement. They also make referrals to appropriate agencies.
Call them at (212) 598-9275 or (212) 598-9279 Monday through Thursday from
4 p.m. to 6 p.m.
How does the UFT help members with HIV/AIDS continue working?
The UFT Committee for Members Who Are Capably Disabled works with the Department of Education to provide any reasonable accommodations that may be needed to enable staff with disabilities (including HIV/AIDS) to stay on the job. As noted earlier, such accommodations are required under federal law. For example, the union has arranged for first-floor classrooms, accessible work sites and projectors instead of chalkboards for written work. The committee meets regularly to provide the latest information about working with a disability and to hear about problems that members encounter.
How can I get more information about the UFT Committee for Members Who Are Capably Disabled?
Phone (212) 598-9276 Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Does the UFT have other information for members with HIV/AIDS?
Yes. Ask one of the UFT’s HIV/AIDS resource specialists for a copy
of the UFT’s booklet Living and Working with HIV Infection: Advice
for Teachers and other School-Related Personnel and the Social Security Administration’s
booklet, A Guide to Social Security and SSI Disability Benefits for People
with HIV Infection.
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