HIV-positive women less likely to find work than male counterparts

HIV-positive women are less likely to find work than men, say researchers.

Washington: HIV-positive women are less likely to find work than men affected by the virus, say researchers.

In a new study, Juan Oliva, a researcher at the University of Castilla-La Mancha (UCLM) explored the relationship between the employment status of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)-positive individuals and socioeconomic characteristics in Spain between 2001 and 2004. The study found that gender was a "statistically significant" variable when predicting employment status. "The probability of HIV-positive individuals participating in the labour market varies significantly depending on gender, type of transmission, health and level of education, Juan Oliva, main author of the study and a researcher at the UCLM told SINC. This statistical analysis, the conclusions of which have been published recently in the journal entitled Health Economics, will determine the likelihood of an HIV-positive individual having a job in Spain. "Gender is a statistically significant variable when predicting employment status. In this sense, women are 13.4 percent less likely than men to be in employment,” Oliva states. "The psychological factor is also a fundamental variable. People who need psychological treatment to overcome the impact of discovering they are infected see their chances of employment diminish," the expert says. ANI