Since 1988 World AIDS Day has been commemorated around the globe on 1st December - to raise awareness of the global AIDS epidemic caused by the spread of HIV infection. HIV/AIDS has a triple impact on the transport sector. It affects the transport workers, their families, communities, the enterprise concerned and the economy as a whole. Some groups of workers are particularly more vulnerable to acquiring and transmitting HIV infection because of the nature and conditions of their work.

A major focus of the Global Unions Campaign is an advocacy plan targeting G8 embassies in every country of the world with locally tailored information. The objectives of the advocacy campaign are to ensure that AIDS stays on the G8 agenda – something for which the GU continues to fight.

ITF has launched a major new long-term campaign, urging its affiliated unions to get involved in HIV/AIDS programmes and activities – to prevent future infections and provide care and support to infected members and their families.
In order for this to happen, the campaign envisages unions bringing HIV/AIDS into their core programmes and activities, and encourages them to bargain to establish HIV as a workplace issue.

At a time when HIV is still spreading steadily across the globe, we are also witnessing progress in controlling this deadly disease. Responses to the AIDS epidemic have grown and improved considerably over the last few years. The objective of this E-bulletin is to circulate AIDS-related news, publications, literature and research to affiliated unions and others working in this field. It is a part of our new Global HIV/AIDS project, which is targeting ITF affiliates all over the globe.

The Global Union AIDS Programme (GUAP) strongly encourages you and your union to make the most of World AIDS Day 2007 by engaging in some form of workplace action, event, or advocacy focused on HIV/AIDS. We know that many of you have been active over several years around World AIDS Day so we ask you to continue the effort in 2007.

Starting from World AIDS Day, 1st December 2006, the International Transport Federation (ITF) has been asking all its unions to join in a long-term campaign to get involved in HIV/AIDS programmes and activities to prevent future infections and provide care and support to infected members and their families.

On of the leaders celebrated by the ILO for World AIDS Day

For 2007 World AIDS Day, the ILO created an exhibition that featured a few of the leaders in the world of work who are taking action on HIV/AIDS.

The 2008 theme of the International Commemoration Day (ICD) for Dead and Injured Workers is "Good Occupational Health for All Workers". ITUC General Secretary Guy Ryder has kicked off this year's ICD by releasing a background paper.

The Global Unions will be carrying their campaign for a new G8 AIDS mechanism to Japanese embassies world-wide from April 28th, through to the Global AIDS Week of Action and onto the G8 summit. Encouraged by the progress made towards establishing a mechanism at the last G8 the Global Unions are appealing to the World AIDS Campaign constituencies and others in civil society to join the 2008 effort.