Employees with cancer might need time off for treatment, surgery and recuperation. Your organization might already have supportive time off policies on its books, or might be willing to consider developing them. Two that are very useful for those with cancer are Paid Time Off (PTO) Programs and Leave Banks or Pools. Here are brief descriptions of these programs.

 Paid Time Off (PTO) Programs

 A PTO plan usually combines all of an employee's paid time off (sick leave, vacation and personal leave) into one bloc of time, or bank, to be used as the employee needs it for whatever purpose the employee wants. For example, if an employee originally received 5 sick, 10 vacation and 5 personal days per year, under a PTO plan she might receive a bank of 20 days per year to use as she determines.

One value for the employee is that she doesn't have to give a “reason” for taking off the days, she just manages her time account. She can use the time for treatment and recovery, to take care of a family member who is not feeling well or for an opportunity to rest. Employees like PTO programs because it gives them greater control over their time off. PTO programs allow employees to decide how much time to take for their various needs.

For employers, PTO programs result in fewer unscheduled absences and enhance employee morale. They also reduce friction between managers and employees and can reduce overall costs.

Leave Banks or Pools

Leave banks and pools can help employees with cancer who exhaust their paid leave, yet need additional time off to deal with their illness and cannot afford to take it as unpaid leave. In both banks and pools, employees donate some of their accumulated paid leave to be used by employees who need it. Some programs allow the donation of vacation days but not sick leave while others allow just the opposite. Other programs allow the donation of any kind of paid leave.

The main difference between banks and pools is that the former is an ongoing program where employees “deposit” days off every year to the “bank”, while pools are set up specifically for donations to a particular person with donations made as needed. Having leave banks and/or pools can enable the whole organization to help retain a valuable employee and participate in a colleague's recovery. It can help the employer establish a caring, supportive environment which enhances employee morale.