Hello everyone, We are going to be taping a podcast about work and breast cancer. We are keen to hear from anyone who was self employed. What tips would you give others regarding work and any que...
Published 6 years ago
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This is a great idea for a podcast @Giovanna_BCNA. I wasn’t self-employed during surgery, chemo and radiotherapy, but worked as a teacher. Some good ideas for a work related podcast might include income protection, your rights at work - discrimination, setting boundaries in the workplace, work-life balance & fatigue. Perhaps you could have a focus on younger and older workers, single vs married, casual vs permanent, or self employed. Issues for CALD workers, or people with disability would also be interesting.
I wasn’t prepared for the hidden discrimination post cancer treatment, and the inflexibility in terms of working hours. Also, when you question anything in the workplace the implication is that you might not be coping, might have cancer back (I’ve been asked that by a manager), or that you have had too many days off for medical appointments. There’s an assumption that you should be better now that active treatment has finished.
As I’ve mentioned on this forum, work has been my rock, my income and my social support. It has also been incredibly difficult to balance the demands of work and treatment, appointments and the associated fatigue. Another issue was the isolation of working during treatment as a lot of support services are offered during working hours when I was working, including physical rehab options.I look forward to the podcast and hearing from self-employed people and other people who had to work through treatment.
I wasn’t prepared for the hidden discrimination post cancer treatment, and the inflexibility in terms of working hours. Also, when you question anything in the workplace the implication is that you might not be coping, might have cancer back (I’ve been asked that by a manager), or that you have had too many days off for medical appointments. There’s an assumption that you should be better now that active treatment has finished.
As I’ve mentioned on this forum, work has been my rock, my income and my social support. It has also been incredibly difficult to balance the demands of work and treatment, appointments and the associated fatigue. Another issue was the isolation of working during treatment as a lot of support services are offered during working hours when I was working, including physical rehab options.I look forward to the podcast and hearing from self-employed people and other people who had to work through treatment.