Cape Breton cancer patient hopes to see EI changes

Woman can’t receive benefits because she’s unavailable for full-time work

A Sydney woman who recently finished breast cancer treatment is calling for improvements to the Employment Insurance system to help cancer survivors as they try to re-enter the workforce.

Erin Richard, 40, was diagnosed last August with stage four triple-negative breast cancer — tumours that are not fuelled by estrogen, progesterone or the human epidermal growth factor. After undergoing surgery and recently completing treatment, which included chemotherapy and radiation, she received a note from her doctor saying that she can return to work, but that initially she should only work two to three days a week.

However, she said she has been told she can’t go from receiving EI sick benefits to labourers’ benefits because she is not available for full-time work if it becomes available.

“The doctor has to put

Richard the note saying I have to ease back and do two days a week for a couple of hours and then build that up and then go back to full-time work,” Richard said. “The EI system now is saying because I’m not available for work at any time, I don’t qualify for EI at all.”

Prior to her diagnosis, Richard worked at a local fast food restaurant and she previously worked in day care centres as an early childhood educator. However, she is hoping to find something that is slower pace and doesn’t require much lifting, as she is still making adjustments physically following her surgery.

The Cape Breton Cancer Centre’s social work team is carrying out a study that will talk to cancer patients forced to collect Employment Insurance sick benefits because of their diagnosis. Richard was interviewed for the project.

While some may have private health insurance to help make ends meet for the duration of their treatment, others like Richard must rely on 15 weeks of EI sick benefits.

Richard’s husband is currently receiving EI benefits, she said, noting that he is a labourer who goes from contract to contract. The stress associated with financial concerns is another strain in the aftermath of a year-long difficult battle with cancer, she said.

She noted that, while she has paid into the fund, now that she is in a position where she needs to collect it, she isn’t able to do so.

“I didn’t ask for this cancer to happen,” she said.

Richard said due to the nature of her illness, she’s been told she will never be considered in remission. Currently, her cancer is considered progression-free — her tumours have shrunk and they have not spread to other areas of her body and they haven’t flared up where they were originally.

In general, she said she still occasionally experiences joint pain, and some numbness due to her mastectomy, but says she is able to stay active.