Transcript Modena 19 marzo “Diritti e tutele nel nuovo mondo del

Brussels 29th July 2008
PROMOTING NEW MEASURESFOR THE PROTECTION OF WOMEN
WORKERS WITH ONCOLOGICAL CONDITIONS
EUROPA DONNA & ADAPT
(Association
for international and comparative studies in labour
law and industrial relations)
“New Rights and Protection
in the workplace”
Patrizia Ravaioli – Director General- LILT (Italian Cancer League)
LILT (Italian Cancer League): WHO WE ARE
• LILT is an Italian public administration body, which
incorporates 103 non-profit associations, focusing on the
fight against tumours. It operates under the patronage of
the President of the Republic of Italy and the control of
the Italian Ministry of Welfare, and serves the hole
national territory .
• LILT co-operates with the Italian State - its regions and
municipalities, and other organizations operating in the
oncological field. Moreover, it is an active member of
European Cancer Leagues (ECL) and International
Cancer Union (UICC), carrying out an institutional role in
European oncology and exchanging information
regarding tumours with the member states.
The LILT mission extends from
prevention to patient rights
We stress:
• Primary and Secondary prevention (information
campaigns, early detection…) Particular attention is paid
to the fight against tobacco addiction (courses to stop
smoking, information campaign, toll free SOS LILT 800
998877)
• Promotion of research projects and scholarships;
• Physical, psychological and occupational rehabilitation;
• Home assistance (a useful alternative to hospital care).
HOW WE ARE ORGANIZED:
LILT divisions are located throughout Italy
Through its 103 provincial divisions
and over 800 municipal delegations, LILT is well established over
the entire national territory
and thanks to its over 350 day clinics,
it offers an important and widespread service in the fight against
cancer.
.
Why is LILT’ s partnership with
Adapt - Marco Biagi Foundation
and Europa Donna
so important?
Because we need to increase and
protect the patient’s rights:
In fact the number of people suffering this pathology is increasing every year :
•
in Italy
there are 30 new cases every hour, which is approximately 270 thousand a
year and in 2010 there could be 400 thousand new cases a year.
•
in the world
there are 12 million new cancer cases every year*;
•
In Europe
- there are three million citizens diagnosed with cancer every day
- and (as you have read in the invitation) a new case of breast tumour is
diagnosed every two minutes (2004)
•
*The estimate comes from the first global report published in American Cancer Society, regarding the diffusion of cancer. This
report provides a record of data collected by the governments from all over the world, and relies on the IARC database
2002.(International Agency for research on cancer)
...if we look at the numbers…
Currently in Italy
There are
ONE MILLION 500 THOUSAND people who have
experienced cancer
(approximately the entire population of a city, like Milan for example)
and what about the number of the families (relatives, partners,
friends) concerned?
This number would equal 5 cities like Milan!
This means that : cancer is also
a social problem
The medical-scientific debate cannot
provide all the answers.
It appears that particular attention should be paid to:
• the sphere of needs,
• the process of social reintegration
in order to respect the dignity of people with cancer
In response to this need, LILT has
progressively reinforced its commitment
towards people with cancer by strengthening
their activities in the:
physical,
• psychological,
• social and occupational
rehabilitation sector
Due to the increase in the number of patients
who fortunately survive, these areas have seen a
growth in demand.
To answer this need and to secure patient rights, LILT
founded the General States Meetings in 2002.
The General States Meetings are a unique
opportunity for patients, ex- patients and
relatives to give voice to their questions and
concerns
In particular:
Give cancer ill and ex-patients a possibility to express their malaise
and their needs;
To promote discussion between patients and healthcare staff;
To prompt doctors and healthcare staff to reflect on everyday
(normal) practise, and modify them, if necessary;
To give the mass media an opportunity to identify the sectors where
the public needs more information;
To allow institutions, politicians and administrative workers more
useful decision-making information ;
To promote patients’ rights
• “First Edition of General States”
10-12th October 2002 at Lecce
• Second Edition of General States”
22-24th April 2004 at Forlì
• Third Edition of General States”
10-12th October 2002 at Agrigento
Where the participation included:
• more than 2.700 cancer ill, ex patients and families
• 103 provincial divisions
• Around 60 Associations, Universities, Federations,
Institutes and Hospitals operating in the oncology field
At the last General States Meeting in Verona in November 2007
The Decalogue of Verona
was formulated to affirm the following rights:
1. The RIGHT TO INFORMATION
-
Grant all patients the right of complete and correct information regarding therapies,
rehabilitation and diagnosis;
2. The RIGHT TO CURE
-
-
Grant all patients equal access to diagnosis and cure within the entire national
territory;
Ensure appropriate therapeutic continuity for patients;
3. The RIGHT TO ASSISTANCE
-
Taking care of people who cannot be healed, through palliative cures;
4. THE SUPPORT OF NON - PROFIT SECTOR
-
The continuity of the voluntary sector or non-profit sector represents an
irreplaceable strength;
Decalogue of Verona
5. The RIGHT TO REHABILITATION
-
Guarantee that patients have the same productive and social roles after as
before their illness.
6.
RIGHT TO PERSONAL DIGNITY
-
Provide free information and legal advice to cancer patients and their families
7.
RIGHT TO PRIVACY
8.
RIGHT TO SELF- DETERMINATION
regaining the patient’s
former productive and social roles
We are now focusing on
The official statistics do not give complete information about the percentage
that, after being diagnosed with cancer, was forced to leave or change their
employment against their will, but information at hand shows that this is the
most common problem faced by the employed patient.
According to research conducted by Astra, for
Europa Donna- Italia, involving women who were operated on for
breast cancer and who were employed before the operation, the
disease had a significant impact on the
employment status of
about 50% of the patients
In fact
• ONLY 52% resumed the same work without
any change after the illness
• Looking at the other 48 %, we see that:
• 21% of the women workers declared that their employment condition
had worsened
• 10% chose to change the type of job they did
• 8% is not sure whether by choice or by force (started working a parttime schedule)
• 8% due to the physical or psychological condition (without any
support from the employer)
• 3% because of discrimination in the workplace
• 3 out of thousand were fired after the operation
This is why LILT, through the LILT Commission for the Rights of
employers with cancer, coordinated by Professor Alessandra
Servidori, and in collaboration with
ADAPT- Marco Biagi Foundation,
and Europa Donna- Italia
wrote a
Manifesto
to promote new measures for the protection of
workers with oncological conditions.
The Manifest, which was presented to the
President of the Republic of Italy (on July 8th,
2008), includes the following 7 articles :
ART. 1
Grant flexible working hours in order to allow patients to continue
their therapy along their work duties. Foresee a slight
modification that employers should make for workers with
particular needs and who are subject to a treatment or
clinical follow up.
The collective labour agreements of public associations provide for flexible working hours in order to meet workers’
particular needs related to a therapy or medical examinations (art.21). There are similar previsions included in
the CCNL of Internal Revenue Services or Ministerial Departments.
The Manifest
ART. 2
Assigning other tasks, equal to previous, but
compatible with the new health status of the
employee, even if this creates situations of
exception in the labour law.
The aim is to lessen the difficulty of performing complex or tiring tasks by
assigning other duties to the cancer victim, and to avoid job demotion
and possible involuntary demission, as a result of an employer’s
prejudice.
The Manifest
ART. 3
The period of paid absence
due to significantly serious pathologies which are
oncological, should be extended according to
length of service
CCNL (National Labour Contract) which regulates the relationship between
insurance carriers and administrative, operational and sales staff, in case of
significantly serious pathologies which are oncological in nature, provides for an
extension of the period of paid absence of: 3 months ,for the workers with working
experience less than 10 years, and 6 months for those with more than 10 years. “
CCNL the railway activities triples that period: 12 months for the ordinary
workers- art. 26 paragraph 6 and 30 months for cancer ill workers- art. 26
paragraph 8.
The Manifest
ART. 4
Length of stay in hospital or out- patients periods used for life
saving therapy (chemotherapy or haemodialysis)
are not to be calculated as absences
when determining the right to retain the workplace
The CCNL in the electrical Industry, besides an additional important period of paid
absence provides even, an additional provision in order to facilitate the workplace
conservation : the length of stay in hospital is not calculated.
In many public contracts ,moreover, out- patients periods or the days used for
therapy such as chemotherapy or haemodialysis, are not calculated in the
period of paid absence (CCNL health division, Inland Revenue Services, public
associations).
The Manifest
ART. 5
Re-evaluate the wages to be paid during the period of
forced absence
It must be mentioned that in most collective agreements
the remuneration
for the first period
(of variable duration dependent on rank, contract and length service)
remains unchanged
but is than reduced (usually to 50% )
The Manifest
ART. 6
Gives workers the right to request an additional period
of unpaid absence
Many work contracts in Italy, in order to avoid the discharge of cancer ill
workers and in case of their inability to resume their work, after the end of
the period of paid absence, permit the cancer ill an additional period of
unpaid absence.
Some collective agreements provide that, before the end of the period of paid
absence, the worker can ask for an additional period of unpaid absence
with a maximum duration of 8 months,
(CCNL food cooperative – CCNL food industry ).
The Manifest
ART. 7
After the end of the period of paid absence, the
worker, when the ability to return to work is
recognized but they are still unable to
resume the duties required, may be offered
other tasks equal to the previous.
This provision exists already in the regional and local CCNL (National
Labour Contract)
In addition: In case of inability to meet this requests, and with the consent of the
worker employers may offer workers an inferior tasks. The CCNLregarding associations operating in paper industry ( art.18) provides that,
worker, in case of inability, (as in above) can be given inferior tasks with a
correspondent reduction in salary.
Just one last comment about the
general knowledge of the labour laws
in Italy:
Referring back to the Astra survey, we
have seen that
(in particular), few people know of the
contribution of Biaggi’ s Law to the area
of cancer patients’ rights,
for example
• Only 35% of survey participants is informed about the
possibility of having medical examinations without
using holidays or asking for special permission;
• 22% knows of their right to an inferior task;
• 20 % is aware that there is a possibility of unpaid
period of absence (short or long);
• And less than 20% (18%) is informed of the right to a
part- time schedule. .
It is evident that even if laws
exist,
communication/information
remains a huge problem.
People must be informed about
their rights under these laws!
WWW.LILT.IT