The Complaint
Anthony had worked as a senior merchandiser for a trading company for ten years, a job he was not ready to give up when he was diagnosed with liver cancer three years ago. The cancer had spread to other parts of his body, and he had to take long-term sick leave from time to time for a series of medical treatments. After five major operations, his health condition finally stabilized early this year.
"On my first day at work, it was horrendous to realize that they had hired someone to take up my post. Instead of my old job, I was tasked with some tedious clerical duties, though I got to keep my title and salary,"said Anthony, confident that he had no problem carrying out his original job duties as a senior merchandiser.
"Four months later, my supervisor informed me that the company had no budget to keep me any longer next year. However, just a week after my departure, I found out that two senior merchandisers in my department had tendered their resignations long before the company terminated my employment.
Yet, they still fired me and went straight ahead to open recruitment,"Anthony complained. "I've come out a winner in the battle against cancer, but I never expected to be struck down by unfair treatment at work!"
What the EOC did
Anthony lodged a complaint with the Commission against his employer for disability discrimination. Before starting investigation, both Anthony and his ex-employer attempted to resolve the dispute by early conciliation, which aimed to settle the case within a shorter period of time. Early conciliation, as an alternative means in settling a discrimination complaint, could be conducted at any stage before or during the process of investigation.
However, on their first attempt, the two parties were unable to reach a mutually acceptable resolution. Just as the EOC reverted to investigation, the two sides informed the Commission that they had reached agreement on the amount of monetary compensation. As such, the case was settled with the Commission's assistance in drafting the conciliation agreement.
What the law says
Under the Disability Discrimination Ordinance (DDO), it is unlawful for an employer to discriminate against an employee by dismissing that person or subjecting him/her to any other detriment on the ground of his disability or sickness. Disability for the purpose of the DDO includes a disability that previously existed but no longer exists. That means legal protection is expected to cover a cancer survivor who is discriminated against because he/she previously had cancer, or is wrongly thought to still have cancer, or may develop cancer symptoms again in future.
Discrimination may occur due to misunderstandings and stigmas of a cancer survivor. Employers should not assume that an employee may no longer perform the same job after recovering from cancer.
Source: Equal Opportunities Commission
Updated: 25 February 2009