People & Organisational Development

Introduction

This section is developed for managers who are responsible for supporting others in the workplace. It includes guidance on how you can support people affected by cancer in the workplace.

Our guidance draws on the resources developed by MacMillan Cancer in the Workplace series and which is informed by CIPD best practice.  You can read more about cancer in Macmillan: Managing Cancer in the workplace guide.

 This manager guide has information about: 

• Understanding cancer and its impacts
• practical actions you can take, including examples of best practice
• your responsibilities as an employer and your colleagues’ rights
• understanding your colleague, whether they have cancer or are caring for someone who does
• how to support colleagues with a terminal diagnosis and bereavement

Understanding Cancer

For most people, cancer will be life changing. It affects both people’s personal professional lives, their outlook and brings with it lots of challenges along the way.

Someone with cancer may be dealing with the effects of tests and treatment as well as the cancer itself. They may be worrying about money or overwhelmed by the number of important decisions they’re faced with.

Understanding what your colleague is dealing with and how they may be feeling can help you to help them.

If you are a line manager, you may be one of your colleagues most important sources of support. Having a basic understanding of cancer and its treatment can help you recognise and plan for any issues that may develop at work.

You are not expected to be a medical expert, but it is important to listen and be comfortable talking about sensitive issues such as a cancer diagnosis. There are lots of types of cancer. Each has its own name and treatment. There are about 3 million people in the UK living with cancer, and that number is increasing.

On average, people are living with cancer for longer than they did in the past. MacMillan have an animation on their website that explains what cancer is. You can watch it at macmillan.org.uk/cancer.

Post treatment, people may continue to remain under active medical surveillance to monitor for reoccurrence for months and often years after the initial diagnosis and treatment. This may include regular check-ups and follow-up tests.

Why your role as line manager is important

As a line manager, you may at some point be managing a person with cancer or someone who is caring for someone with cancer. You are an important source of support for that colleague because of the following:

• You are often the first person the colleague contacts when they are unwell and cannot go to work.
• You are responsible for the day-to-day management of the colleague. This responsibility will continue throughout cancer diagnosis, treatment and the return of the colleague to work.
• You play an important role in making any reasonable adjustments for the colleague.
• You may be the first person the colleague contacts when they need to talk to People and OD or the occupational health team.
• You manage the colleague’s workload and can change the level of pressure or demand on them. This will be important if the colleague is returning to work after some time off.
• You can help make sure the colleague is not too stressed when they come back to work after time off. This can help to avoid the need for more time off.

To help you best support your colleague, you should contact your People and OD Partner or the occupational health team, they can give you the information and support you need as a manager. This could be:

• guidance about the colleague’s health condition
• advice on any reasonable adjustments needed
• information about their return-to-work plan.

You might find it helpful to discuss your worries with occupational health or your People & OD Partner. But if a colleague wants to keep their diagnosis confidential, you must respect this.

How cancer may impact someone at work

Cancer and its treatment can affect people’s work in different ways. It can depend on:

• the type of cancer
• the stage of the cancer (its size and whether it has spread)
• the symptoms that the cancer is causing
• the type of treatment and its side effects
• how the person copes with the diagnosis
• the type of job they have.

Some people find working helps them have a routine and feel in control. Being able to keep working or go back to work can help people cope while they are waiting for a diagnosis. It can also help someone having treatment or caring for someone with cancer. Some people need to work for financial reasons. Some people will still want a career as it gives them a sense of purpose, but may find it difficult to talk about career aspirations in time-bound terms, ie being asked where they see themselves in 3-5 years. Be led by the individual in exploring ways you can support their growth and development through considered and mutually developed objectives.

Some people stop working. This might be because the cancer is advanced, or because the cancer symptoms or side effects from treatment make it impossible to work. Other people may not feel able to work because they have lost their confidence.

Before a colleague decides to leave their job, it is important that you talk to them about their options. This might include arrangements that could help them stay in work, such as changing working hours or changing to another role in the University.

Some people will die from cancer. It can be a shock when a colleague dies, especially if it is soon after a diagnosis. You can speak to a specialist on the Macmillan Support Line at 0808 808 00 00. 

Treatment and side effects

Learning more about cancer treatments can help you understand how treatment may affect your colleague.

Cancer can be unpredictable. Someone with cancer may need to have lots of hospital appointments and treatment for a long time. This may mean they need time off work at short notice. You should read up on the University’s

Many people have side effects from cancer treatment. These may change over time. For example, your colleague may become very tired (fatigued).

After certain treatments, some people may need to go back to hospital for regular outpatient appointments. For example, they may have speech therapy or physiotherapy.

If the treatment affects how parts of the body work, it may stop the person doing some parts of their job.

Ask them to let you know how treatment is going. This is so you can understand how their symptoms and treatment affect their job. You can then review their working arrangements and duties. You may be able to make reasonable adjustments to help. For example, you could let them:

• have frequent breaks
• have access to a fridge to store medicines
• work different hours
• work from home
• reduce the number of hours they work.

You can read more on treatment and side effects at MacMillan Managing Cancer in the Workplace.

After treatment

Many people recover well and can go back to their usual working life after treatment has ended. But having and recovering from cancer can have a big physical and emotional impact. Some people find getting back to work difficult. Many will continue to be medically supervised for reoccurrence for years after initial diagnosis.

People may struggle with tiredness (fatigue), their emotions and any changes to their body caused by the treatment.

Some treatments leave people with long-term side effects, such as:

• fatigue for many months, or sometimes years
• pain, swelling or lack of movement in a limb
• only being able to eat little and often
• needing to use the toilet more often.

People often want to get back to work. But they might have difficulty going back to their job. They need your understanding and support to do this successfully. It is also important to support them over time. This is because long-term side effects may improve but then come back.  

The University’s Managing Attendance policy has been designed to provide a consistent framework for the management of attendance and promotes open communication as the most effective tool to ensure that the working environment supports, as far as possible, attendance at work. It provides outline procedural guidance for managing attendance and specific guidance is available on key stages via the links provided. Read more the Managing Attendance Policy.

Some people recover well after treatment and are never affected again by the cancer. Many will remain under some form of active surveillance for many years. For some people, cancer can come back after treatment. This means they need to have more treatment. Other people may be living with cancer that cannot be cured.

Supporting employees with cancer requires a combination of empathy, flexibility, and practical assistance. By fostering a supportive work environment, offering appropriate resources, and maintaining open lines of communication, you can help them navigate this challenging time while remaining valued members of the team.

Legal Rights

The legal protection against discrimination does not end when a person’s cancer treatment ends. If they have been diagnosed with cancer in the past, they continue to have legal protection against discrimination.

This is the case even if they:

• no longer have cancer
• no longer need treatment
• move to another employer.

Carers are also protected from some types of discrimination, more information about this is available in MacMillans Working while caring for someone with cancer guidance.

Which areas of employment are covered by this legislation?

The Equality Act 2010 and the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 cover all areas of employment.

These include:

• recruitment
• terms and conditions of employment, and any benefits
• opportunities for promotion and training
• ending someone’s employment.

Reasonable Adjustments

Reasonable adjustments are changes to the workplace or job that allow an employee to keep working or return to work. If a person is in paid employment and they have or have had cancer, an employer should consider making reasonable adjustments to support them.

The Equality Act and Disability Discrimination Act say that an employer must make reasonable adjustments when the workplace or work practices put an employee at a ‘substantial disadvantage’ because they have or have had cancer.

Managers should refer to the University’s guidance on Reasonable Adjustments is part of the Support for Disabled and Neurodivergent Colleagues Toolkit as support resources available to managers and colleagues when exploring potential adjustments which outlines the typical process to be followed. Additional advice can be sought via your People and OD Partner or from the Occupational Health Service, depending on individual/specific circumstances.

The University has also developed a Reasonable Adjustment Passport. The passport is optional but can be used in conjunction with this process and whilst primarily designed to capture and record agreed adjustments the form can be helpful at any stage of dialogue when considering adjustments.

Conversations about cancer

Cancer is an emotional subject, and you might be worried about how to talk about it in a sensitive and professional way. But don’t avoid talking about cancer, even if it makes you feel uncomfortable. If you’re having conversations about cancer, here are some things to keep in mind.

First conversations

If you don’t know much about a type of cancer, its treatment, or side-effects, look it up. If they don’t mind, ask your colleague to explain how the cancer or its treatment might affect them. It’s important to remember that cancer treatments can affect people differently. You should also bear in mind that they might not yet be sure how it will affect them. Asking your colleague can be a good way to learn, however they shouldn’t be solely relied upon to educate you about their condition. They’re unlikely to be an expert in cancer, and they may not wish to share personal details. You can find out more about cancer by visiting MacMillan Cancer Types and Information.

Your colleague may also want to have another person with them during conversations about cancer. This may be a work colleague or trade union representative, exceptionally you may agree to a family member helping to support the discussion. You may want to take notes, but this should be done carefully so that confidentiality is maintained.

Some colleagues prefer to look for help themselves and read existing policies. They may not tell anyone about the cancer. Others find an informal chat easier.

If they can, let your colleague take the lead by telling you what has happened. Let them tell you what support they feel they need from you.

Make sure you end the meeting by telling your colleague that their work is valued. Let them know that they can talk to you at any time if they need your help. Agree how you will keep communication open, and set a date for the next meeting.

Line managers are often in the best position to speak with a colleague affected by cancer. It is also important to look after yourself and to get support if you need to, you can reach out to your People and OD Partner for advice and support.

Be sensitive

Communication is very personal, and you will need to think about what you might say to your colleague. Remember, everyone is different. What is right for one person might not be helpful for someone else. Think about the individual person and their situation.

Getting started

Here are some tips to help you prepare for conversations:

• Choose a private place to talk and make sure you will not be interrupted.
• Be prepared for the conversation to overrun. Let your colleague set the pace.
• Show you are listening. Use eye contact and encourage conversation by nodding or saying things like, “I see” or “What happened next?”.
• Thank the colleague for sharing their situation with you.
• Show that it is okay to be upset. Give your colleague time to express their emotions and recover, if necessary. Try to stay calm yourself.
• Show empathy with phrases like, “That must be very upsetting”.
• Respond to humour but do not start it. Humour can be a helpful coping strategy for people going through a difficult time.
• If your colleague becomes too upset to continue, end the meeting. Tell them you can talk again when they are ready.

Talking about cancer

Try not to:

• be afraid of silence – it is okay if it goes quiet for a bit
• offer advice
• use phrases like, “Things could be worse” or “Things will work out”
• ignore your colleague’s feelings
• share stories about other people you know who have cancer – this takes the focus away from your colleague.

Keep the conversation going

It is important to keep talking to your colleague to make sure they are getting the support they need. Here are some things you can do:

• Ask how they are feeling, both emotionally and physically. Tell them you empathise with their situation.
• Check you understand what the person is saying. If you are unsure what they mean or how they feel, just ask.
• Do not judge or offer advice that has not been asked for. Your role is to offer support and signpost to expert sources.
• Ask if they want colleagues to know and what information should be shared. Respect their feelings and wishes.
• Ask what sort of time off they might need for medical appointments and during treatment. They may not know at this point. It is often a case of seeing how things go.
• Even if a colleague is in remission, continue to demonstrate empathy. They may remain under medical surveillance for years to come which, in itself, provides both reassurance and stress to the employee. Do not be afraid to talk to them about how they feel and how it impacts them.
• At P&DR, be mindful that colleagues affected by cancer may have different responses when discussing their future career aspirations compared to those not impacted by the illness. Consider reframing these conversations to emphasise growth and development opportunities, rather than making direct comparisons with other colleagues. While some individuals may feel comfortable discussing their future career plans, others may not. It is essential for managers to remain sensitive to this, focusing more on general opportunities for growth and development without emphasizing long-term aspirations in terms of specific timeframes.

Give them information

It is important that your colleague has the right information to help them make decisions about work. But try not to give them too much information straight away, as this might be overwhelming. When they are ready, start sharing helpful information such as the following:

• Tell them the options they have for taking time off including:
  • Emergency Time to Care for Dependents Policy
  • Special leave
  • Other unpaid leave
  • Parental Leave Policy (if applicable)
• Show them organisational policies on reasonable adjustments and coming back to work after sick leave.
• If the person is a carer, they may benefit from understanding the University’s Carer’s Policy and Flexible Working policy.
• Tell them about their rights to be protected against discrimination, either because they have cancer or because they are caring for someone with cancer.
• Give them details of support resources including the employee assistance programme that offers counselling to all University employees and their immediate family members.
• Access to work is a government scheme. It offers grants and advice to help employees with a disability or health condition stay in work. It can provide practical and financial support if you have a disability or physical or mental health condition. The quickest and easiest way to apply for Access to Work is online.  The scheme may pay for:
  • special aids and equipment needed in the workplace.
  • advice about managing your mental health at work.
  • travel to work if an employee cannot use public transport.
  • a support worker.

• Talk to them about the support made available through SHAWS, an external support agency who provide 1:1 support for a person experiencing cancer or with caring responsibilities for someone with a cancer diagnosis, find out more at Health & Work Service | Beatson Cancer Charity.
• Financial Wellbeing information for employees outlined in the resources section of this guidance.
• Health and wellbeing programmes including:

1. Able Futures - mental health support service provided by Access to Work. This is a no cost service, with no waiting list and it’s a confidential service.  Support from Able Futures is available over the phone, video calls and through email. Colleagues who feel they could benefit from additional support with their mental health and wellbeing, can contact Able Futures on 0800 321 3137 or visit able-futures.co.uk to sign up online.
2. The University's Active Lifestyle Wellbeing Programme. To learn more download the brochure: 
3. The University's Lived Experience Ambassador Network
4. The University's Prostate Cancer Wellbeing Support Group. Colleagues seeking more information about the University's Prostate Cancer Support Group can contact prostate-awareness@glasgow.ac.uk or make contact via MS Team Channel 

Supporting carers

Your colleague may be caring for someone who has cancer. Becoming a carer might not be something they have planned for. It can be physically and emotionally demanding.

Getting the right balance between caring and working can be difficult.

Working carers have legal rights, which aim to help them keep working. These include the right to time off during an emergency. Every employee also has the right to request flexible working.

Caring duties may mean that an employee needs some time off. They might take sick leave or annual leave when there is an emergency, rather than asking for time off to care for someone with cancer. This is often because people do not know that their caring role is a reason to request leave. Or some colleagues may not want to tell you they are caring for someone. Cancer can be unpredictable. Someone with cancer may need long courses of treatment, with lots of hospital appointments. This means their carer may need time off work at short notice.

Side effects and symptoms can also continue after treatment finishes. This means they may need time off for a while. You may need to be flexible about this.

As soon as you know that your colleague is caring for someone, talk to them about:

• any leave and flexible working policies
• their rights as a carer and their options for leave
• any information they can provide to help you support them.
• their health and well-being

Caring can affect the carer’s ability to work. They may find it difficult to concentrate or feel tired from lack of sleep. Being a carer can also make health problems they may have worse. For example, it can make their blood pressure or back problems worse.

They may need time off to look after their own health. They may feel guilty or lose confidence if they are unable to do their usual work while they are caring. Being a carer may also affect their own career development. They may not feel confident about looking for promotion or applying for a new job. Being a carer should not have a negative effect on an employee’s future job prospects. It will help if you can reassure them about this. There may also be things you can do to help them feel confident.

It may be helpful to share with colleagues MacMillan’s support resources for people who are caring for someone with cancer titled: Working while caring for someone with cancer.

Financial Considerations

Some benefits for carers (and people with cancer) are not dependent on income and colleagues who are carers may be able to claim while in work. 

It is important to apply quickly so they do not miss out on payments.

As a manager you can signpost colleagues on to MacMillan who will also give information about where to seek expert advice on state benefits and other financial matters. Colleagues can call MacMillan’s financial guides and benefits advisers on 0808 808 00 00, or visit macmillan.org.uk/moneyworries.

End of life and Bereavement

Some people will die from cancer. It can be a shock when a colleague dies, especially if it is soon after a diagnosis. You can speak to a specialist on the Macmillan Support Line at 0808 808 00 00. Or you may find Macmillan's booklet After someone dies – coping with bereavement helpful in managing your own feelings as well as supporting others in your team who may also be experiencing grief following the loss of a colleague. 

Line managers, People and OD leads and colleagues can all provide support when an employee is working with terminal illness. It’s also important that those providing support have information, advice and guidance to draw on themselves.

Support can come from a range of sources including national charities for example Marie Curie and Macmillan Cancer Support as well as our internal resources via the University Chaplaincy, People and OD and Occupational Health.

As a manager, here’s how you can support a colleague with a terminal illness:

1. Be Flexible: Where possible, consider making reasonable adjustments to accommodate their needs. This might include providing time off for medical appointments, modifying their duties, adjusting their workspace or equipment, or offering flexible working hours. Engage in a conversation with your colleague to understand what adjustments would improve their work experience and develop a mutually agreed plan. Regularly review this plan, as their needs may evolve over time.
2. Review Workload: Evaluate your colleague’s workload in light of their health and any adjustments you’ve implemented. Determine whether any changes are necessary and discuss these potential changes with your colleague to ensure they’re appropriate and supportive.
3. Ask for Their Preferences: Beyond practical adjustments, consider offering emotional support. This could involve checking in with them during absences or communicating with colleagues on their behalf. Always check with your colleague first to understand what kind of support they would like from you.
4. Financial consideration: in relation to financial wellbeing, if a doctor or a medical professional has told someone that they are likely to have 12months or less to live, the person might be able to access benefits to help with living costs, for example Employment and Support Allowance, Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment. For benefits like these, there are what are called ‘special rules for end of life’. If the person is in receipt of such benefits, this might enable them to access social tariffs for energy, water and broad band costs.
5. Explore Retirement Options: If your colleague is a member of the USS Pension Scheme or the University of Glasgow Pension Scheme, they may be eligible for Early Retirement on the Grounds of Ill Health. In cases of terminal diagnosis, USS members may also have the option to request full commutation of benefits. Consult with your People and OD Partner for guidance on the process where this may be appropriate.

At some point, an employee with a terminal illness may decide that it is the right time for them to stop working.

Things to think about:

• If/how the employee would like to share news of their leaving with colleagues, and the wider organisation
• Maintaining contact with your employee after they leave your organisation, if that is something they’d like.
• Supporting individuals to maintain workplace friendships
• Would they like to share contact details of a close family member or friend?
• Marking their contribution, for example with an article in a staff newsletter, or a special recognition award
• Recruiting to the vacancy with sensitivity
• If they would like news of their death to be shared with you
• How will colleagues be told of their death, and funeral arrangements shared with those who may want to attend
• Allowing compassionate leave to staff asking to attend a former colleague’s funeral
• Supporting employees to remember their colleague for example through an activity in their memory
• Intervening in automatic processes that normally occur when a member of staff leaves. These might include correspondence about office/desk/locker reallocation and retrieval of work equipment for example laptops, equipment or phones.
• Standard wording and processes might be ill fitted to the circumstances where someone is leaving due to a terminal illness.

Bereavement

Knowing what to say to a co-worker when someone dies

Bereavement is one of the most difficult things any of us will ever go through.   For many managers, it can be difficult to know how to respond when a team member is bereaved or if a team member dies.  It may help to refer to the University's Bereavement Guidance for Line Managers which provides information and resources to help managers support colleagues.

Managers should also read the University’s Bereavement Leave Policy and ensure any leave taken is appropriately recorded.