A woman has apparently been fired after telling her boss that she had been diagnosed with cancer, according to reports today.
Carol Jumper, from Pennsylvania in the USA, was diagnosed with a type of cancer that will affect her liver, ovaries and pancreas.
Her fiancé, Dennis Smerigan, claims that Carol received a letter from her boss, Dr. George Visnich, telling her that she was going to be let go without compensation.
Carol has apparently been working for the surgery for over 12 years.
Carol Jumper was apparently fired.
The handwritten letter, which has emerged online, reads: “You are currently engaged in a battle against cancer that will be demanding physically, mentally and emotionally.
“The symptoms of the disease, the pain medications you will need and the side effects of the chemotherapy will be significant and distracting.
“You will not be able to function in my office at the level required while battling for your life. Because of this, I am laying you off without pay as of August 11, 2014.”
The letter continued: “Our thoughts and prayers are with you as you fight this horrible disease. Thanks for your time at Visnich Oral Surgery. I hope your battle is swift, smooth and successful.”
The handwritten letter that Carol Jumper allegedly received.
Although the office did not reply to requests from reporters, Larry Kelly, a lawyer for Visnich, told the Beaver County Times that Carol had been laid off so that she could claim unemployment benefits.
“He’s trying to help this woman and he’s made out to be a villan,” he stated, adding that the letter was written “with the understanding that when she is feeling better, she can come back to work.”
Her fiancé, however, does not agree. He also spoke to the newspaper, saying: “He didn’t even call her, he hasn’t called her once since she got sick.”
There is an act in place in America that protects current and recovering patients from discrimination in the work place known as the Americans with Disabilities Act.
