Hi Ann,

Thanks for writing to us.  I’m sorry to hear about your re-diagnosis, but it sounds like you’re on an exciting path to finding full-time work.  Whether/how to disclose a cancer diagnosis to a potential and/or new employer  is an important and personal question that comes up for many survivors who are in treatment and looking for a new job, and different people take different approaches to answering it. Below are some things to consider as you figure out the approach that works best for you.   

The first thing to remember is that,  in general, there is no legal obligation to disclose your medical condition to a prospective or current employer either during the interview process or after you’ve been hired. That said, if you want to access a reasonable accommodation under the American’s with Disabilities Act (ADA) – such as taking Monday afternoons off - you may have to disclose some information to show you are entitled to that accommodation (for more on reasonable accommodations: https://www.cancerandcareers.org/en/at-work/legal-and-financial/requesting-reasonable-accommodations). However, you may choose not to disclose during the interview process but instead wait until you receive an offer - or even wait until you have started the job. I recommend watching our webinar to get a better understanding on issues around disclosure: https://www.cancerandcareers.org/en/community/videos/bwc/2017-webinar-online

Second, we often find people forget to ask their healthcare team if there is any way to adjust their treatment schedule to better suit their work needs. Your health definitely has to come first, but you may find that your chemo could be administered before or after work hours or on the weekend with no impact on its efficacy. But you won’t know unless you ask.

Once you’re hired, you might also explore the possibility of adjusting your work schedule, such as coming in early/staying late on certain days or putting in time on the weekend to make up for the hours you’re at doctor appointments. Our Working Through Treatment webinar has more information on how to think about schedule flexibility - and reasonable accommodations overall: https://www.cancerandcareers.org/en/community/videos/bwc/2017-webinar-treatment

One final thing to note is that the ADA applies to eligible job applicants and people who work for a private employer with fifteen or more employees, or a state or local government of any size, so you might want to think about the size of the company when reviewing positions.  Some states’ laws protect individuals working for employers with fewer than 15 employees. Our partner, Triage Cancer, has a Quick Guide to Cancer-Related Laws by State available at http://triagecancer.org/resources/quickguides.  

Some other resources that I recommend checking out are:

• Interviewing information: http://www.cancerandcareers.org/en/looking-for-work/interviewing
  

• Blog on gathering information before disclosure: http://www.cancerandcareers.org/blog/gathering-information-before-d
  

• Job Search Toolkit (2nd Edition): http://www.cancerandcareers.org/publication_orders/new (features a advice on improving resumes, cover letters; interview and networking tips and other useful tools to help you during a job search)

• Upcoming Job Search Webinar (March 8th): http://www.cancerandcareers.org/en/community/events/webinar-jobsearch2017
  

If you have any further questions, please feel free to contact us at cancerandcareers@cew.org or 646-929-8032.

Kind regards,

Nicole Franklin, MPH

Manager of Programs

Cancer and Careers