We have just hired a new nanny (since 1 Sep 2014) to look after our 3 month old baby full time in our house. She got sick and landed in hospital last Sunday (Still there) and yesterday we found out she is HIV+ and has Spinal cord TB. She is very ill and we don't know how advanced she is or how long her recovery will be. I am very concerned but also in 2 minds about what to do... She is a great lady and very good with our baby but obviously our baby's wellbeing comes first. Yes we can let her go and get someone else but then how will I know what their HIV status is? You cant ask or force them to reveal. After this ordeal, I think it would constantly play on my mind if I didn't know. Do we use the knowledge we have to our advantage and educate her or do we get someone else being totally unaware of their status...
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Pitbull
Verboten
I have a brother that is HIV+ and I know exactly what fears you're going through.
I was exactly the same and as I learned more about the illness the more I was at ease. Let me run down what my concerns were and what the facts are
. Would he not infect my kids by accident? Fact: When they are on meds it's very hard to transfer the illness and it needs to be blood on blood contamination. Meaning she needs to bleed directly into your child's wound also bleeding.
. As for the secondary infections like TB and the likes. If your child eats healthy TB should not be a problem. I don't know about infants though that you will have to read up a bit more yourself.
All in all your child should be very safe. Things you can't control though will be her sick leave and if she really wanted to be spiteful and infect your child she easily can.
O sorry and I missed the part regarding her status:
Have a sit down with her and talk openly. Tell here you suspect she might have HIV and want to reassure her that you are not chasing her away. You want to help her and be open with her. She will then either deny it or open up. If she opens up you will have a great relationship. But make her open up and tell you herself. Just say you suspect something and advise her to take a test for her own health concerns. But don't chase her away because of her status. Rather the devil you know that the devil you don't
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ToxicBunny
Oi! Leave me out of this...
There is nothing wrong with having a Nanny who is HIV+ as long as you take the correct precautions, help her to get onto ARV's and help her manage the situation....
XennoX
Expert Member
I'd be extremely uncomfortable if I had a kid whose nanny was HIV+. Not because they're HIV+, but because of the other ailments they can contract.
Pitbull
Verboten
TB I think is the only one you NEED to worry about. I don't think infants have a strong enough immune system to ward of TB. Like I said, I don't know and you will need to study that yourself. But the other things like shingles and the like won't affect the baby.
It's easy to comment on this topic when one hasn't been in the same boat. A friend still has a nanny who is HIV+ and they are going as normal after having a good talk. I had a nanny this year whom we found out was HIV+, and we ended at CCMA and I still have a bloody nose. Moral of the story is that not all situations are the same. We advised our friend to keep her nanny even though she was HIV+, but we got rid of ours when we found out she was. They were both HIV+ but their situations were different, for reasons I can't divulge. So this is not cast in stone, and the child's well being should be paramount in making the decision, taking into account labour law which makes it illegal to request HIV tests/results from job prospects or fire a nanny for being HIV+.
ToxicBunny
Oi! Leave me out of this...
So basically you "fired" your Nanny because she was HIV+ and she rightly took you to the CCMA and is dragging you to the cleaner..
Piss poor bloody pseudo labour law expert you are.
Piss poor bloody pseudo labour law expert you are.
DA-LION-619
Honorary Master
If you're looking for someone to look after your child and they don't wanna reveal their status, don't hire them.
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Pitbull
Verboten
Nothing wrong with that. I my case I don't have a choice. He's my brother. I will however rather not know than know and worry about it. If that makes sense. When it comes to a Nanny ofc.
semaphore
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Yeah, i understand.
@DA-LION-619 - Well that is the obvious approach, but what if it lands up they are in fact infected. Is there any legal route one can follow for immediate dismissal?
I settled at conciliation for her own sake.
That's all you can do really since you can't ask her to take an HIV test otherwise you can face an unfair conduct charge, or she can resign and you can face an automatically unfair dismissal charge and face 24 months' salary award against you. I have a new nanny and I don't know if she is HIV+ or not, and I'm not so worried about it. But truly speaking, I would be worried if I found out she was HIV+ but it doesn't mean I would fire her. I fired the last one for other reasons (misconduct) which were made worse by the fact that she was HIV+.
That is illegal, you are not supposed to discriminate against job applicants based on their HIV status. You can find yourself paying her 24 months' salary without her even working for you a single day.
Actually the HIV+ person is more likely to get those ailments from an HIV- person than the other way around.