Cancer and Disability Awareness in the Workplace

Every year more than 127,000 people of working age are diagnosed with cancer in the UK.  No one likes to think about the “C” word, but with the risk that roughly 1 in 2 people will be diagnosed with cancer during their lifetime we really do need to be talking about it.

Automatic Protection

In the UK, individuals with cancer are automatically protected from discrimination in the workplace as the Equality Act 2010 defines cancer as a disability.  The individual is considered disabled and is therefore protected from the point of diagnosis (even after cancer treatment has ended or if the person is in remission) for the rest of their life.

Automatic protection from discrimination means that an employee who has received a diagnosis at any time, cannot be treated less favourably because of their condition.  

What does the law say about disability?

The law says someone is disabled if both of the following apply:

• The employee has a ‘physical or mental impairment’ and
• the impairment ‘has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on their ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities.’

People with progressive conditions, and conditions or impairments that are automatically classed as a disability, are also protected by law.  The Equality Act 2010 also protects people who are no longer disabled but have been affected by a disability in the past.

Does my employee have to tell me that they’ve been diagnosed with cancer?

Nobody has to tell their employer (or potential employer) if they’ve been diagnosed with cancer or might have a disability.

Reasons for not saying anything could include:

• they do not realise their condition is a disability
• they do not think of themselves as disabled
• they’re worried about how their employer might react
• they do not want anyone to know

Employees are still protected from discrimination if their employer could reasonably be expected to know they have a disability, even if it has not been declared.

If an employer believes someone might have a disability, they should take all reasonable steps to find out more about the support they might need. What is reasonable will depend on the circumstances and vary from person to person.

Things that might be reasonable include:

• talking to the employee privately to ask if there’s any support they need
• asking the employee if they would agree to see an occupational health adviser
• assuring the employee that anything they tell you will be dealt with confidentially

This does not mean asking intrusive questions.  An employer should not try to diagnose someone – only a medical professional can do that.

Making Reasonable Adjustments in the Workplace

Employers are legally obliged to make reasonable adjustments to support employees with cancer and other disabilities.  A common adjustment is to have a flexible working arrangement, particularly during treatment.  It is often the treatment that affects patients more than the cancer, employees who are still able and want to work during treatment may need to adjust their hours or days of work and if possible, work from home.   You may also need to consider having to provide adapted equipment.   No two situations will be the same, different employees will have varying needs, and you may also need to regularly review adjustments to make sure that they are still appropriate as your employees health may change over time.

We have talked before about the importance of health questionnaires and the need to make reasonable adjustments.  If you missed this article, then please click here for more information.

You can contact us or further expert advice on managing cancer and other disabilities in the workplace and how to make your workplace more inclusive and avoid discrimination.