Pune: After almost three years, a woman employee, who was fired from her job for being HIV positive, got justice. The Labour Court ordered her former employer to reinstate her in the same post and clear all back wages.
The Pune-based victim told ANI that she was asked to quit the very same day she submitted a medical document for claiming medical benefits in 2015.
“I was asked to submit a document for the medical claim and when I did that, they asked me about it (HIV). I told them I got it from my husband and within 30 minutes, they forced me to resign. I was working there as a trainee operator for 5 years,” she said, as reported.
What was more insulting was that though the company verbally told her that the reason behind her removal is HIV, the document she was provided with mentioned “absenteeism” as the reason.
The victim got the virus from her husband who died from the disease. Her in-laws have also boycotted her for the disease.
Advocate Vishal Jadhav, who represented the victim, told ANI, “An employee was terminated on the basis of being tested positive for HIV, however, the company claims that the employee resigned herself. The employee challenged the company order in a court in Pune. The court found that no employee can be terminated on being tested positive for HIV as the termination can only take place under the frame of law, which was not done in this case. As a result, the company was asked to reinstate her in the same post she was in, along with providing all the back wages.”