The charity Macmillan Cancer Support has launched a new resource for employers to help them support both people with cancer, and their carers, in the workplace.

'The Essential Work and Cancer Toolkit', which includes an employer’s guide produced in collaboration with the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), aims to give employers a better understanding of the physical, emotional and financial impact of a cancer diagnosis, practical guidance on how to manage employees with cancer, and information on how people with cancer are protected by the Equality Act.

Ciarán Devane, chief executive at Macmillan Cancer Support, said: “With the number of people with cancer set to double from two to four million in the next 20 years, it is vital that employers are equipped to deal with people who are working through, or after, cancer.



“Businesses would reap big rewards if people with cancer were offered effective back-to-work support. Helping people with cancer stay in work doesn’t have to be difficult and it is likely to be cheaper and easier than recruiting a replacement, or defending a discrimination claim.”



He concluded: “We hope by using the toolkit HR departments and managers will feel more capable and confident in supporting their employees affected by cancer.”

The toolkit also includes posters, booklets and top tips for line managers and was contributed to by a forum Macmillan corporate partners, including nPower, Ford, New Look, Nationwide Building Society, and Coventry County Council.



Ben Willmott, head of public policy at the CIPD, said: “Supporting and managing people affected by cancer is a growing challenge for employers, as more and more people who have cancer are learning to live with it as a chronic rather than a terminal illness. Their families, friends and work colleagues are also having to adapt and learn how best to support them.”


Each year, more than 100,000 people of working age are diagnosed with cancer in the UK, and many of the country’s six million carers are looking after a friend, or relative with cancer.


Macmillan is also the charity chosen to benefit from this year’s SHP IOSH Awards, which take place on 20 October.



The free toolkit can be ordered from Macmillan’s website: www.macmillan.org.uk