The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has prepared guidelines to determine whether an employer may be treating an employee differently based on stereotyping certain employees, as to caregiving to people for whom they are responsible based on gender or other protected characteristics. Although the federal EEO laws do not prohibit discrimination against caregivers per se, there are circumstances in which discrimination against caregivers might constitute unlawful disparate treatment. The purpose of the guidelines is to assist investigators, employees, and employers in assessing whether a particular employment decision affecting a caregiver might unlawfully discriminate on the basis of prohibited characteristics under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 or the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. The guidelines are not intended to create a new protected category but rather to illustrate circumstances in which stereotyping or other forms of disparate treatment may violate Title VII or the prohibition under the ADA against discrimination based on a worker’s association with an individual with a disability. An employer may also have specific obligations towards caregivers under other federal statutes, such as the Family and Medical Leave Act, or under state or local laws. You may click on the links above or the guidelines can be found at: http://www.eeoc.gov/policy/docs/caregiving.html#background