HIV And Job Discrimination
Can I be turned down for a job because I'm HIV positive?
It's certainly legal for an employer not to hire you for your abilities, but if they do not hire you because you are HIV positive, that is illegal. If you can prove that the employer denied you a position that you were capable of doing because of your HIV, you can sue that employer not just on your own behalf, but to make a larger point to society. That people with HIV are not inferior or not less than every other American.
Will I get fired if my employer knows I'm HIV positive?
You may get fired. If you do, you have a legal case. You can certainly be fired for other reasons, but if the employer fires you simply on the basis of knowing that you're HIV positive, not for your ability to do the job, then you have legal recourse.
Does my employer have to accommodate my illness if I have HIV?
These days HIV medicine is so much better that there is not a lot of reason for an employer to accommodate. Now, does that mean taking off on occasion to go to a doctor's visit? Does it mean when you start medication you may be uncomfortable or feel quesy in the first week? Those are minor accommodations and those are the kind of accommodations that most employers make for all employees. Gone are the days where people with HIV had extended hospital stays and can't do daily jobs. Things have changed so much for the better that people with HIV are now just like everyone else. Go to the doctor on occasion and that should be the primary issue.
Do I have to tell my employer I am HIV positive?
No, you don't need to tell your employer that you are HIV positive unless you are a surgeon or a prize-fighter. Unless there is the potential for exchange of blood or semen, there is no good or rational reason why your employer needs to know that you are HIV positive. Unless of course you need accommodations because of being HIV positive- if you need to go to a doctor's visit often. But even in that case, there has to be some compelling reason to tell them that you are HIV positive. I don't think they deserve to know that an employee is HIV positive and I think the right to privacy is far greater than the right for an employer to know.