In modern society, the issue of treatment of individuals with caregiving responsibilities in the workplace is becoming more and more important. More employees have some form of caregiving duties than ever before – whether one is talking about single parents, two-parents households where both adults work, or the ever increasing situation where an employee is responsible for the care of elderly or disabled parents or other relatives. This issue has raised enough concern that the EEOC recently issued a guidance document relating to potential disparate treatment of caregivers in the workplace. Additionally, a newly-issued case from the 1st Circuit sheds light both on the EEOC’s guidance and the issue generally. In Chadwick v. Wellpoint, Inc., No. 07-70 (D. Me. 5/2/08), the court held that, while there is no such thing as “caregiver discrimination” under federal law, treating employees differently because of traditional sexual stereotypes does constitute actionable sex discrimination under federal law.
