Man Suspended From Job After Revealing He Has AIDS Virus

A Hollywood man who admitted in a television newscast that he has contracted the AIDS virus has been suspended from his job at a Torrance factory and expects to be fired after more than five years of employment there.

Everardo Mariscal, 26, was placed on paid leave Wednesday by officials at Simpson Race Products, which manufactures helmets, fire-retardant suits and other accessories for race car drivers.

Mariscal, who shows no apparent symptoms of AIDS, said he is considering suing to retain his job. He said coping with his illness is bad enough and worrying about his job security compounds his problems.

“I need money for my rent,” he said.

AIDS activists are angered by the company’s action, saying it violates state law that bars discrimination against people who have the human immunodeficiency virus, and are capable of working.

“It’s unlawful. You can’t do it,” said Roger Tansey, director of legal services for AIDS Project Los Angeles. “(The virus) is not casually transmitted. There’s no justification for it.”

Lori Adler, spokeswoman for Simpson Products, declined comment. She also declined to say whether Mariscal would be reinstated or fired. Mariscal said he would meet with his employers Monday to discuss the situation.

Mariscal’s employment problems began Tuesday after he appeared on the 6 p.m. newscast of Spanish-language television station KVEA-Channel 52. Some of his co-workers were watching as Mariscal urged opposition to U.S. immigration policy that bars the entry of HIV-infected foreigners. They also heard Mariscal admit that he had tested positive earlier this year with the HIV infection.

A Simpson manager called Mariscal into the parking lot 20 minutes after he arrived for work the next morning, Mariscal said.

“He told me the other workers saw me on television and I had AIDS,” Mariscal said in an interview at his apartment. “He said they were terrified because of my presence there.”

Within the hour, Mariscal was told to go home and that he would be paid until company officials decided whether he had a future with the firm, he said.

Mariscal, who immigrated from Mexico six years ago, believes he will be fired from his $296-a-week job. The soft-spoken man said he never suspected that his job would be at risk if he disclosed that he had contracted the AIDS virus. Mariscal said he works directly with only a few employees and hardly ever touches them.

“There’s no danger to anyone,” he said. “In this country, you’re not supposed to have problems if you tell the truth.”

Experts say AIDS is not contracted through casual contact. The disease is usually passed through sexual contact or by sharing contaminated needles to inject drugs. The disease also is passed through transfusions of infected blood.

What happened at Simpson products indicates that experts have had trouble persuading everyone of the safety factors. One employee, who asked not to be identified, said a number of co-workers were concerned about Mariscal and spoke with their supervisors Wednesday morning. The employee said he doubted that anyone requested that Mariscal be placed on leave or fired. “Management made a decision by themselves,” the worker said.