B.C. should expand job-protected illness leave to 26 weeks

Article content

Imagine you have just been diagnosed with cancer and you need to be off work for several weeks, and perhaps months, to undergo treatment. You have young children, and your income is critical to balancing your family’s budget and keeping the bills paid. Now imagine your employer doesn’t offer short- or long-term leave, and the financial support available to you through the federal EI sickness benefit isn’t enough to make ends meet. You have a community of support rallying behind you to get through cancer, but with no guarantees from your employer that your job will be safe while you’re in treatment, you lie awake at night filled with worry.

Article content

That’s a real fear for too many British Columbians. And with two in five Canadians expected to be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime, it’s a reality some of us will face.

B.C. law provides only eight days of job-protected leave — three unpaid and five paid sick leave days. If you are too sick to work, you can be terminated after that eight-day protected period. Your job isn’t secure and you can be terminated through no fault of your own simply because you are too sick to work. We can and should do better for people facing serious illnesses like cancer.

Of those diagnosed with cancer in Canada, nearly 40 per cent are in their working years, ages 20 to 64. With a growing population and global studies showing a rising number of young adults being diagnosed with cancer, we can expect that number will increase. That means cancer often comes at a time when you may be paying down debt, supporting your family or planning for retirement — when bills are high and others depend on you.

As cancer treatments improve, we see many people ready and able to return to work following treatment. More people are surviving cancer and living longer with the disease than ever before. That means there are people willing and eager to get back to work — to have their life return to a new normal after their cancer experience. They deserve to know they have a job to come back to.

Article content

Article content

Living in B.C. means we have fewer protections than most other Canadians. Quebec provides 26 weeks of job-protected leave. Manitoba recently tabled legislation to support 27 weeks. Ontario, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and P.E.I. have conducted public consultations and are expected to align their employment laws similarly. Meanwhile, B.C. offers only eight days.

Yes, there are some protections in place. B.C.’s human rights framework states it’s illegal to terminate an employee on sick leave. While this is technically accurate, the reality tells a different story. Cases of termination during cancer treatment persist despite these protections, forcing individuals into lengthy legal battles. This puts the onus on the person with cancer to fight for their right to be employed. A job-protected leave policy ensures that right is afforded up front, making it one less thing to worry about.

The federal EI sickness benefit now offers 26 weeks of paid time off for those with an illness like cancer. From the 1970s until 2022, the benefit provided only 15 weeks of assistance. The Canadian Cancer Society spent years calling for change because 15 weeks doesn’t cover the time it takes for many to undergo treatment and recover from their cancer. We fought hard for Canadians to receive 26 weeks of paid time off work to get well. Now, we ask that B.C. does its part to ensure citizens have job security while they take upwards of 26 weeks to undergo lifesaving treatment and recovery.

Article content

The solution is relatively simple. The B.C. government need only adjust the province’s job-protected leave policy to a reasonable length of time. To us, that length should be 26 weeks to align with the federal EI sickness benefit and other provinces.

The B.C. government is investing to better support cancer patients. One year into the 10-year Cancer Care Action Plan, they have already improved medical travel support, hired more cancer care professionals, invested in prevention through cervical cancer self-screening and advanced new regional cancer treatment centres across the province, among other important achievements. It takes a society to improve cancer care, and that involves governments, health care, community organizations and employers all coming to the table to improve outcomes for cancer patients.

This election, it is time for B.C. to catch up with the rest of Canada and expand its job protection for sick leave to 26 weeks. While cancer doesn’t wait, your job should.

Andrea Seale is chief executive officer of the Canadian Cancer Society.   

Bookmark our website and support our journalism: Don’t miss the news you need to know — add VancouverSun.com and TheProvince.com to your bookmarks and sign up for our newsletters here.

You can also support our journalism by becoming a digital subscriber: For just $14 a month, you can get unlimited access to The Vancouver Sun, The Province, National Post and 13 other Canadian news sites. Support us by subscribing today: The Vancouver Sun | The Province.

Article content