CWU raises cancer awareness at BT

The CWU communication workers’ unions and telecoms giant BT are working together on a major cancer awareness initiative.

“Cancer and You”, the fifth joint WorkFit health initiative run by the union and BT, is supported by the cancer information and advice charity Cancerbackup.

CWU national health and safety officer Dave Joyce said the campaign, which began last month and lasts for six weeks, involves:

• the provision of information and guidance, partly through a dedicated section of the BT intranet site;

• a major event at the BT Centre in central London;

• a series of roadshows across BT’s UK operations, with CWU health and safety reps involved; and

• a range of local initiatives delivered by BT staff and supported by union safety reps.

According to Joyce, 250 BT workers are diagnosed with cancer every year – and 2,000 have overcome the condition and are back working for the company.

One in three people in the UK will develop cancer, and the figure is rising. “That means we will either get cancer ourselves or it’ll strike a family member, friend or work colleague,” Joyce said.

The campaign builds on previous WorkFit initiatives including WorkFit 1, in which 16,000 CWU members signed up to a 16-week change-of-lifestyle programme aimed at reducing the risk of a heart-related illness, and WorkFit 4, conducted with mental health charity MIND to mark World Mental Health Day.