We recently discovered a great resource from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC) website that we wanted to share: Questions & Answers about Cancer in the Workplace and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

This page includes various types of information regarding the following topics: 

• An introduction to the ADA and the EEOC
• General information about cancer
• How the ADA applies to cancer and how cancer survivors can use the ADA
• Ways in which employers can accommodate employees with cancer
• Concerns about safety
• Harassment
• How to file a charge of employment discrimination

Some examples of important questions addressed on the page are:

• Prior to making an offer, is an employer allowed to ask a job applicant whether he has (or had) cancer or about his treatment related to cancer?
• Does the ADA require an applicant to disclose that she has (or had) cancer or some other disability before accepting a job offer?
• If an applicant voluntarily reveals that he has (or had) cancer, is an employer allowed to ask any follow-up questions?
• If an employee is on leave due to cancer, is an employer allowed to require that person to provide documentation or have a medical exam before allowing her to return to work?
• If an employee has lost a significant amount of weight or appears fatigued, is an employer allowed to explain to co-workers that the employee has cancer?
• What types of reasonable accommodations might employees with cancer need?
• How does an employee with cancer request a reasonable accommodation?

You can also check out our article “Your Legal Rights in the Workplace: Cancer and the ADA, FMLA.”

And for additional information on reasonable accommodations, watch the video from our recent Balancing Work & Cancer webinar on “Working Through Treatment.”