Abstract
Objectives:
to understand the issues from HIV stigmatization over the professional life of seropositive workers.
Methods:
qualitative study with semi-structured interviews, whose data were categorized by using the technique of content analysis in the thematic modality. The subjects of the research are 15 participants of the Group of Adhesion of the Testing and Counseling Center of Imperatriz, Maranhão, Brazil. The discourses were treated in the light of the Theory of Stigma proposed by Erving Goffman.
Results:
from the analysis, three categories emerged: barriers - “[…] because they will never want me;” losses - “[…] some showed me friendship, some showed me prejudice;” and silence - “[…] keep… silent all the time.”
Discussion:
the barriers imposed to the interlocutors contribute to a negative perception of the possibility of reinsertion in the job market. The practice of discriminatory lay-offs leads workers to keep constant silence about the seropositive situation so that the HIV stigma does not turn them into targets of discrimination at the work environment.
Keywords:
HIV; social stigma; employment; occupational health