Addressing Family Responsibilities Discrimination

Publication Date: December 2008

Publisher: Alfred P. Sloan Work and Family Research Network; Hastings College of the Law. Center for WorkLife Law

Author(s): Stephanie Bornstein; Julie Weber

Research Area: Business; Labor; Social conditions

Keywords: family responsibilities discrimination; caregiving discrimination

Type: Brief

Coverage: United States

Abstract:

The brief describes state policy efforts to address family responsibilities discrimination (FRD) -- employment discrimination in which workers are fired, demoted, not promoted, denied employment benefits, or harassed because of their caregiving responsibilities for a child, partner, or elderly relative. The brief explores the growing problem of FRD, why FRD is a policy matter, and how FRD negatively impacts both employees and their employers.
The brief also details recently proposed state legislation on FRD, the first research of its kind to do so.