Niranjala Siriwardena, Cancer Survivor and Former Manager at PwC Australia, shared a post on LinkedIn:
“Australia is failing cancer survivors at the exact moment they try to return to work
- The gap isn’t motivation
- The gap isn’t resilience
- The gap is in workplace certification
In France, CancerWork has certified 130+ companies, covering ~10% of the workforce.
In the UK, Disability Confident has 18,000+ organisations enrolled.
Globally, the Working With Cancer Pledge has 2,500 companies, including Google, Microsoft, and Amazon.
In Australia, there is nothing.
Zero.
- No framework for employers to demonstrate they support cancer survivors
- No recognition program
- No certification
And that’s why the survivor journey breaks.
The Survivor Journey: Where it breaks
- Diagnosis: the medical system steps in hospital
- Treatment: hospital support is strong
- ‘You’re done’: treatment ends… and the gap begins
- Disorientation: you’re not sick, but you’re not well
- The work question: when do I go back? How many hours? What if I crash?
- GP advice: ‘take it easy’ (well-meaning, not a plan)
- HR response: ‘Let us know when you’re ready’ (well-meaning, not structured)
- Google searching: generic info, not personalised support
- Struggling alone: return too early and burn out, or wait too long and lose confidence
This is where careers quietly collapse.
Many survivors reduce hours permanently, change roles, or leave the workforce entirely.
Research shows 67% of cancer survivors report changed employment after diagnosis.
So here’s my question to Australia:
- Why do we have national standards for safety… but nothing for survivorship at work?
- We need a national workplace survivorship certification that employers can work toward — and be held accountable to
- If you’re an HR leader, CEO, policymaker, insurer, or survivor:
- What would you want included in an Australian Cancer-Friendly Workplace Certification?”
Proceed to the video attached to the post.
More posts featuring Niranjala Siriwardena.