California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act, known as FEHA, does more than protect employees who are disabled themselves. It also protects employees who are treated unfairly because of their relationship to a disabled person. This is called associational disability discrimination, and it is one of the lesser-known protections in California employment law. Many workers — and many employers — do not realize it exists.
What Associational Disability Discrimination Means
Associational disability discrimination happens when an employer takes a negative action against you because of your connection to someone who has a disability. You do not have to be disabled yourself. The law recognizes that some employers treat caregivers as a problem — as someone who will need time off, leave early, or be distracted — and then push them out the door because of it.
Under FEHA, it is unlawful for an employer to fire, demote, or otherwise discriminate against you because of a disability or other protected characteristic, and those protections extend to your association with a person who has one.1 In plain terms: your employer cannot punish you for who you are connected to.
In one California case, a truck driver was the only person who could give his disabled son daily dialysis. His employer first agreed to a schedule that let him be home for the treatments. When a new supervisor changed that schedule and he objected, the company fired him. A court let his case move forward, finding he may have been fired because of his connection to his disabled son.2
Who the Law Protects
This protection is not limited to one kind of relationship. You may be covered if you are mistreated at work because of your association with someone with a disability, including:
- A spouse or partner with a serious illness or disability
- A child with a disability or chronic medical condition
- A parent or other family member you help care for
What matters is whether your employer treated you differently because of your connection to a person with a disability.
Common Signs Something May Be Wrong
Not every negative experience at work is discrimination. But certain red flags may point to something unlawful. Ask yourself:
- Did problems start shortly after you told your employer about a family member’s illness or disability?
- Were you suddenly written up or disciplined after years of solid performance, once your caregiving became known?
- Were you denied a schedule change, time off, or flexibility that other employees seemed to get without trouble?
- Did a new manager change your arrangements and then treat you as difficult for objecting?
- Was the reason given for your discipline or termination vague, shifting, or hard to square with your actual record?
Any one of these may be a coincidence. Together, they may be evidence that something unlawful occurred.
Can Your Employer Be Required to Accommodate Your Caregiving?
This is a developing area of California law. Employers have long been required to provide reasonable accommodations to employees who are disabled themselves. In recent years, several courts have indicated that FEHA may also require an employer to at least consider an accommodation — such as a modified schedule — for an employee who needs it to care for a disabled family member. Other courts have disagreed, and the California Supreme Court has not yet settled the question.
Here is what that means in practice: if your employer refused to even discuss a reasonable accommodation that would have let you keep your job while caring for a loved one, that refusal may matter.3 Because the rules are still taking shape, an experienced California employment attorney can help you understand how they apply to your situation.
What You May Be Entitled To
If you were unlawfully fired, demoted, or otherwise harmed because of your caregiving relationship, you may be entitled to recover lost wages and benefits, compensation for the emotional toll of what happened, and in some cases additional penalties against the employer. The value of any claim depends on the specific facts. An employment lawyer can help you understand what a claim like yours may be worth.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I be fired for caring for a sick or disabled family member in California?
California law does not allow your employer to fire, demote, or punish you because of your relationship to someone with a disability. If you were let go shortly after your caregiving became known, that timing may matter. An experienced California employment attorney can help you evaluate whether your termination was unlawful.
Do I have to be disabled myself to bring a claim?
No. Associational disability discrimination protects employees who are not disabled but who are treated unfairly because of their connection to a disabled person. You may have a claim even if your own health is fine. An employment lawyer can help you determine whether the law applies to your situation.
Is this the same as family medical leave?
No. Leave laws like the Family Medical Leave Act and the California Family Rights Act give some employees the right to take time off to care for a family member. Associational disability discrimination is a separate protection that focuses on whether you were punished because of that caregiving relationship. You may have rights under more than one law, and an employment lawyer can help you sort out which ones apply.
Can my employer be required to change my schedule so I can be a caregiver?
This is an unsettled and developing area of California law. Some courts have recently suggested that employers may need to consider reasonable accommodations for employees who care for a disabled family member, while others have disagreed. Because the rules are still taking shape, an experienced employment attorney can help you understand your options.
How do I know if I have a case?
Every situation is different, and these claims often turn on details like timing, your work record, and how other employees were treated. The best way to find out is to talk with someone who handles these cases. An experienced Sacramento employment attorney can review what happened and tell you whether you may have a claim.
Talk to an Employment Lawyer
If you believe you were treated unfairly at work because of your connection to a disabled family member, Richardson Employment Law, P.C., can help. We represent employees throughout California, with offices in Sacramento and Roseville. Our consultations are free, and we handle cases on a contingency basis — there is no cost unless we recover compensation on your behalf. Call 916-533-9909 today to schedule a free case review.
This blog post is provided for general informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice. You should consult with a California employment attorney to obtain guidance tailored to your specific circumstances.
Endnotes
- See Cal. Gov’t Code § 12940(a) (making it unlawful for an employer to discharge or otherwise discriminate against a person because of physical or mental disability or another protected characteristic); id. § 12926(o) (defining the listed protected characteristics to include a perception that the person is associated with a person who has, or is perceived to have, such a characteristic).
- See Castro-Ramirez v. Dependable Highway Express, Inc., 2 Cal. App. 5th 1028, 1044 (2016) (recognizing that an employee’s association with a disabled family member may support a FEHA discrimination claim where that association was a substantial motivating factor for the adverse employment action); see also Rope v. Auto-Chlor Sys. of Wash., Inc., 220 Cal. App. 4th 635, 655–660 (2013) (recognizing disability-based associational discrimination as a cognizable claim under FEHA).
- See, e.g., Head v. Costco Wholesale Corp., No. 24-cv-01203-EMC (N.D. Cal. June 5, 2025); Acosta v. NAS Ins. Servs., LLC, No. 2:25-cv-00656 (C.D. Cal. Mar. 31, 2025); DeWit v. Amazon.com Servs., LLC, No. 5:24-cv-01185 (C.D. Cal. July 17, 2025) (federal district courts concluding that FEHA may require an employer to engage in the interactive process and consider reasonable accommodations for an employee associated with a disabled person).