This research symposium was the first on HIV/AIDS in the workplace in South Africa. It was held in 2004 and focused in a critical way on HIV/AIDS and the world of work, without the commercial agendas that so often cloud discussion and debate. Some 30 research papers were presented and 10 round table discussions conducted.

Delegates came from academia, research organisations, consultancies, business, unions, civil society and government. In line with the objectives of the symposium this provided a mix of academic critique of research and a focus on policy implications.

As the first such symposium, the call for papers was broad and all submitted abstracts relevant to the area that met quality criteria in a peer review process were accepted. This provided a valuable benchmarking of what research is currently under way in South African on HIV/AIDS and the workplace.

The report summarises some of the key outcomes of the symposium, drawing on the reports submitted by session chairs (which are attached as an Appendix to this document) and the final plenary discussion. The rest of this summary is organised into four themes:

• how do we conceive of the workplace in relation to HIV/AIDS?
• what do we know and what don’t we know about HIV/AIDS in the workplace?
• who’s who in the world of work and HIV/AIDS?
• what is needed in regard to research and HIV/AIDS in the workplace?