Discrimination at work

If you have or have ever had cancer, the law considers this a disability. This means you cannot be treated less favourably than people who do not have cancer because you have cancer.

You also cannot be treated less favourably for reasons connected to the cancer. That would be discrimination.

There are laws that protect you from being discriminated against at work because of cancer. If you live in:

• England, Scotland or Wales, the Equality Act 2010 protects you
• Northern Ireland, the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 protects you

If you are unsure whether you are protected, contact our Macmillan Support Line for free on 0808 808 00 00 for more advice.

Experiencing discrimination because of cancer can happen in different ways. Here are some examples of disability discrimination that may happen if you are affected by cancer:

• An employer giving you a formal warning for having a lot of time off sick, without taking your cancer diagnosis into account.
• An employer suggesting that it would be better if you retired or stopped working, because you have cancer.
• Being dismissed for a reason related to having cancer.
• Being moved to a lower-paid or less demanding job without your agreement, for a reason related to having cancer.
• Not getting a promotion when someone with less experience or less ability to do the job does, because of a reason related to having cancer.
• Being chosen for redundancy for a reason related to having cancer. For example, being chosen because you have used more sick leave than your colleagues, due to cancer or treatment.
• Not being offered a job because you have cancer.
• Not being allowed time off for medical appointments that are related to having cancer.
• Having a bad appraisal or performance review for a reason related to having cancer. For example, having a bad review because you have had a lot of sick leave or tiredness and so have not met targets or objectives.
• An employer making it difficult for you to get any sick pay you are entitled to.

If you feel you are being discriminated against, it is best to start by talking to your:

• manager
• human resources (HR) manager
• occupational health adviser.

Talking to any of these people may help resolve the problem.

If you are a member of a trade union, you can get help and support from a union representative.

If you feel your employer is not acting in a reasonable and fair way, or you have not been able to resolve the problem in a way that you are happy with, there are different options.

There are short, strict time limits for making a claim to an employment or industrial tribunal. You will usually need to make your claim within 3 months, minus 1 day, of the problem happening. For example, if you were discriminated against on 13 July, you need to start the process by 12 October. But there are a few exceptions.

It is important to get advice as soon as possible. The following organisations provide information about discrimination and your rights:

• Equality Advisory Support Service
• Equality Commission for Northern Ireland.

We have more information in our booklet Your rights at work when you are affected by cancer.

If you have worked with your employer to explore reasonable adjustments and steps to return to work, but have not been able to, you may need to consider leaving your role. If this happens, we have more information about finding a new job.

In some circumstances, if you are not well enough to return to work or you are not able to do your work because of your health, an employer may follow a disciplinary route towards dismissal. This is called dismissal under capability. Your employer has to prove that they have taken all steps to help you return to work. This is usually a last resort.

If you are self-employed, you may not have legal protection against discrimination. In some cases, you may be protected against discrimination if you are employed under a contract. This means there is an agreement between you and an employer that you will personally do work and be paid for it.

You may also be protected if you work with a public authority, under their public sector equality duty. You are protected from discrimination in the provision of services to you.

If you have your own business you may not be protected from disability discrimination by a customer or client.

Problems may happen because of a misunderstanding about cancer. Some examples of this are a client thinking that:

• you can no longer do the same work
• you may be less committed to work because of the cancer
• cancer makes you unsuitable for certain contracts.

Or another contractor may think that they will need to do extra work because you are having treatment.

Any of these attitudes can lead to difficulties in your work life when you have cancer.

Even if the law does not protect you, talking to people you work with about the cancer diagnosis and its impact can often help.

If you feel you are being treated unfairly, it is best to start by talking to your customer or client.

Talking openly about what you and your customer need may help to find a solution. You could suggest solutions to show your commitment to the job. This could include making small changes to your duties to fit with your needs.

The Access to Work scheme may be able to help with the cost of these changes if needed. Visit Access to Work for more information about the scheme in England, Scotland and Wales. Visit NIDirect for more information about the scheme in Northern Ireland.

If you are contracted by another business, ask them or their human resources (HR) manager about relevant company policies. For example, the company may have:

• an equality and diversity policy
• a bullying and harassment policy
• an equal opportunities policy.

These are usually found in the employee handbook or on the intranet, if they have one. You may not have access to these policies, but you can still ask to see them.

If you want to know how equality laws could help you, call:

• the Macmillan Support Line free on 0808 808 00 00
• the Equality Advisory Support Service in England, Scotland or Wales
• the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland
• Citizens Advice.