It will not be news to many female employees with cancer, that employers treat female employees with cancer disparately from men with cancer. This is a synergy of both disability discrimination and sex discrimination. Women without disabilities are often held to a higher standard in employee performance evaluations than are men. This is particularly true when a woman is in an occupation that is traditionally dominated by men, where she may be seen as an “imposter” simply because of her sex.
When a woman also has a disability such as cancer, she is often held to an even higher standard for promotions, or even retention, than a male employee who has cancer. If she is retained while non-disabled male employees are let go, other resentful employees may ignorantly assume it is only because the employer is afraid of a lawsuit; not because of the high quality of her work product. If a woman with cancer is promoted over male counterparts, she may be viewed as an “imposter” by her co-workers who were passed over, ignorantly assuming she only promoted because of her disability, in order that the employer will have good “affirmative action” stats.
Female cancer survivors and those in treatment should not have to suffer discrimination at work and bear with a hostile work environment. Employees with cancer are entitled to reasonable accommodations at their workplace to allow them to remain employed. Numerous state and federal laws prohibit discrimination against an employee who had or has cancer, or are perceived as having cancer.
This firm has successfully represented both private and public employees who were cancer survivors or undergoing treatment. To persons diagnosed with cancer, treating for it, or having survived it and returned to work, don’t give up! The law is on your side for your employer to make reasonable accommodations that will allow you to remain employed, and you should contact this officer immediately if your employer refuses to make accommodations or threatened to fire you or retaliates against you for your asking for accommodations that will allow you to remain employed.
Reasonable Accommodations to Remain Employed
An employee who has cancer should request a reasonable accommodation from their employer that will allow them to remain employed if that accommodation is necessary. What is “reasonable” is not strictly defined in a statute, but case law has defined “reasonable” as an accommodation that would not impose an undue hardship on the employer or that would not result in significant expense or difficulty in running the business. I have successfully represented female and male employees with cancer for over two decades and found that a failure to accommodate the employee’s disability to allow them to remain employed is one of the main types of discrimination that employees with cancer face.
A reasonable accommodation in some instances for those employers and employees who are covered under the FMLA, may be extending the 12-week leave allowed under the FMLA to a longer period of leave if the person needs to remain out of work longer for treatment.
Other accommodations that have been found to be reasonable are:
A change of office location to accommodate a wheelchair if necessary;
A change of the employee work schedule to allow the person more time for treatment and/or rest;
A change of the days or hours when appropriate;
Allowing the employee to work from home whenever possible;
Allowing breaks for rest that are not on a schedule but as need arises;
A change of the room environment and/or furniture to accommodate a disability, such as a change of desk or chair;
If the employee is temperature sensitive due to chemotherapy or other treatment, setting the thermometer differently;
Allowing the employee to return to work and be allowed subsequent time off for therapy and doctor’s visits.
If You Quit Your Job, You May Lose Right to Prevail in a Lawsuit.
If you quit your job, you may lose your right to prevail in a lawsuit. If you are thinking of quitting, or you think you will be fired, you should know that you may lose your right to prevail in a lawsuit unless you first take certain legally required measures to preserve your job while you are still employed. If you are thinking of quitting, or think you will be fired, you should contact this office immediately to discuss your options in the safest way for you. I am an aggressive and compassionate employment law attorney who is experienced in representing private and public employees with cancer.
If You Complained about What You Reasonably Believed to Be Your Employer’s Illegal Practices and Your Employer Retaliated
Do not sit on your rights, or you may lose the right to file your claim. If you have been demoted, had your hours cut, terminated, harassed or been subjected to retaliation for complaining about, objecting to, refusing to participate in, or reporting what you believe is your employer’s illegal or improper conduct, you should contact this law firm as soon as possible. I am an experienced and compassionate employment attorney who will be aggressive about enforcing your rights. If you believe you are being discriminated at work because of cancer, or your employer denies an extended leave that the employer routinely gives to male employees with cancer, or the employer fails to provide a reasonable accommodation to allow you to remain employed, it is important for you to consult with an experienced employment law attorney.
If you are being subjected to such unlawful workplace retaliation, contact Hope A. Lang, Attorney at Law today for a free consultation. I accept disability discrimination cases from all over New Jersey.
New Jersey employment attorney, Hope A. Lang, Attorney at Law serves clients throughout the state, including Bergen, Middlesex, Essex, Hudson, Monmouth, Ocean, Union, Camden, Passaic, and Morris Counties with locations in Southern, Central, Western and Northern NJ to meet with clients.