I am generally very open about the fact that I am positive. When I wanted to go back to work at the beginning of February, I went to a temporary employment agency and told them that I am 60 per cent severely disabled. And I also told them the reason, my HIV infection.
What were the reactions?
As always, they were a bit taken aback that I was so open about it, but they didn't really care. They said that they would of course point out my severe disability when placing me, but it was entirely up to me whether and to whom I told them the exact reasons.
And then came the job interview at the day-care centre.
Yes, but that wasn't really a problem either. The after-school care centre belongs to two primary schools, but is run by a large private provider that has dozens of childcare centres in Berlin and the surrounding area. My centre has two managers, who were of course a bit shocked at first when I said that I was positive, but quickly calmed down when I explained that I was well aware of the risks and that I was dealing with the issue openly and constructively.
What kind of risks?
I am publicly present as a positive person via I KNOW WHAT I DO. So there's a chance that parents of children will discover me on the internet, for example. Then it could also happen that someone complains, along the lines of: "He's gay, HIV-positive - and is he allowed to look after my child?" To avoid any nasty surprises, I informed the management of the day care centre.
You started out as a temporary worker. Now you've been a permanent employee for a few weeks. How did that come about?
Good work, I would say! (laughs) There was a vacant 30-hour position and the management was very keen to fill it with me. The temporary employment agency let me go and I then went with my bosses to the management of the sponsoring organisation, who had to approve my employment.
Once again, you immediately said that you were positive.
Yes, anything else would not have worked for me. And again, it wasn't a problem. I've generally found that people respect and reciprocate openness when dealing with the infection. You can easily overcome certain fears if you deal with the topic yourself without fear.
And then three weeks ago you explained it to the entire staff.
Which was a really nice experience! We called a staff meeting, I distributed my flyers from ICH WEISS WAS ICH TU and then explained what it was like with me. Most of my colleagues were surprised, of course, but some of them already had experience of dealing with positivity in their private lives and were able to give me a bit of a helping hand. I believe that I KNOW WHAT I DO helped. My colleagues could see that I deal with the topic of HIV in a reflective way and answer any questions they have.
Has anyone ever asked: "How do we explain this to the children or the parents?"
No, the colleagues should know, the children don't have to. If it should happen that parents find out and have questions, my specialist doctor has already offered to come along to the day care centre and answer questions in a large group. I can also refer them to I KNOW WHAT I DO. We already answer a lot of questions that parents might have.
(Interview: Paul Schulz)
Stephan's story at ICH WEISS WAS ICH TU
IWWIT blog post on Labour Day: AIDS-Hilfe calls for integration
