As we enter the third year of a pandemic, the ongoing disruption caused by COVID-19 and its variants often leaves employers juggling legal and business considerations regarding their workforce. Specifically, many employees are also caregivers — whether they are caring for children, a spouse, an individual with a disability or older relatives. Practically, issues arise when facilities such as schools, daycares or nursing homes have quarantine or closure requirements that directly conflict with an employer's quarantine or remote-work policy.
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has released a technical assistance document, "The COVID-19 Pandemic and Caregiver Discrimination Under Federal Employment Discrimination Law." It also has released an update to its COVID-19 questions and answers series, explaining discrimination against employees and job seekers with family caregiving responsibilities.
Employers will benefit by understanding two things: first, what federal employment discrimination laws may be implicated as it relates to caregivers and second, how an employer's policies can be drafted such that caregivers and caregiving responsibilities are addressed.
Caregiver discrimination violates federal employment discrimination laws when it is based on an applicant's or employee's sex, race, color, religion, national origin, age, disability or genetic information. It is important to note that "caregiver" is...
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