II 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 5136 

To protect employees from discrimination based on family caregiver 

responsibilities, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

NOVEMBER 29, 2022 

Mr. BOOKER introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To protect employees from discrimination based on family 

caregiver responsibilities, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Protecting Family 

5 Caregivers from Discrimination Act of 2022’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act: 

8 (1) ADVERSE ACTION.—The term ‘‘adverse ac9 tion’’ means— 


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1 (A) to threaten, penalize, fail or refuse to 

2 hire, or to discharge any individual, or other3 wise to discriminate against any individual with 

4 respect to the individual’s compensation, ad5 vancement, terms, conditions, scheduling or 

6 work hours, or privileges of employment; 

7 (B) to limit, segregate, or classify employ8 ees or applicants for employment in any way 

9 which would deprive or tend to deprive any in10 dividual of employment opportunities or other11 wise adversely affect an individual’s status as 

12 an employee; 

13 (C) to make a communication regarding 

14 immigration status, as described in section 

15 4(a)(3); or 

16 (D) any other act or practice that is con17 sidered an adverse action under title VII of the 

18 1964 Civil Rights Act (42 U.S.C. 2000e et 

19 seq.). 

20 (2) COMMERCE.—The term ‘‘commerce’’ has 

21 the meaning given such term in section 3 of the Fair 

22 Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 203). 

23 (3) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’ 

24 means the Equal Employment Opportunity Commis25 sion. 


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1 (4) EMPLOYEE.—The term ‘‘employee’’ 

2 means— 

3 (A) an employee, as defined in section 3 of 

4 the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 

5 U.S.C. 203), who in any workweek is engaged 

6 in commerce or in the production of goods for 

7 commerce, or is employed in an enterprise en8 gaged in commerce or in the production of 

9 goods for commerce; or 

10 (B) an individual who is engaged by— 

11 (i) an employer; or 

12 (ii) an individual or entity that is not 

13 acting as an employer and engages the 

14 services of a worker to perform services or 

15 work as an independent contractor (re16 gardless of the label or classification as17 signed or used by the employer or an indi18 vidual or entity that is not acting as an 

19 employer and engages the services of a 

20 worker). 

21 (5) EMPLOYER; ENTERPRISE ENGAGED IN COM22 MERCE OR IN THE PRODUCTION OF GOODS FOR

23 COMMERCE.—The terms ‘‘employer’’ and ‘‘enterprise 

24 engaged in commerce or in the production of goods 

25 for commerce’’ have the meanings given such terms 


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1 in section 3 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 

2 1938 (29 U.S.C. 203). 

3 (6) FAMILY CAREGIVER RESPONSIBILITIES.— 

4 The term ‘‘family caregiver responsibilities’’, with re5 spect to an employee having such responsibilities, 

6 means the responsibilities of the employee as being 

7 responsible, or being regarded as being responsible, 

8 as a contributor to the support or care of one or 

9 more family members of the individual, regardless of 

10 the age of the family member. 

11 (7) FAMILY MEMBER.— 

12 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘family 

13 member’’ means, with respect to an indi14 vidual— 

15 (i) a spouse (including a domestic 

16 partner in a civil union or other registered 

17 domestic partnership recognized by a 

18 State) and a spouse’s parent; 

19 (ii) a child and a child’s spouse; 

20 (iii) a parent and a parent’s spouse; 

21 (iv) a sibling and a sibling’s spouse; 

22 (v) a grandparent, a grandchild, or a 

23 spouse of a grandparent or grandchild; and 

24 (vi) any other individual who is re25 lated by blood or affinity and whose assoVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:44 Nov 30, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5136.IS S5136

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1 ciation with the individual involved is 

2 equivalent of a family relationship. 

3 (B) RELATIONSHIP.—A relationship de4 scribed in clauses (i) through (vi) of subpara5 graph (A) may be acquired through adoption, 

6 marriage, or a dependent or custodial relation7 ship. 

8 SEC. 3. PROHIBITION ON DISCRIMINATION. 

9 It shall be unlawful for an employer or an individual 

10 or entity described in section 2(4)(B)(ii) to— 

11 (1) fail or refuse to hire an applicant as an em12 ployee of such employer, or such individual or entity, 

13 because of the family caregiver responsibilities of the 

14 applicant; or 

15 (2) take adverse action against an employee of 

16 such employer or such individual or entity, or other17 wise discriminate against such an employee, includ18 ing by harassing the employee, with respect to the 

19 compensation, advancement, terms, conditions, 

20 scheduling or work hours, or privileges, of employ21 ment or engagement of the employee because of the 

22 family caregiver responsibilities of the employee. 

23 SEC. 4. PROHIBITION ON RETALIATION. 

24 (a) INTERFERENCE WITH RIGHTS.— 


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1 (1) EXERCISE OF RIGHTS.—It shall be unlawful 

2 for any employer or an individual or entity described 

3 in section 2(4)(B)(ii) to retaliate against, interfere 

4 with, restrain, or deny the exercise of or the attempt 

5 to exercise, any right provided under this section. 

6 (2) ADVERSE ACTION.—It shall be unlawful for 

7 any employer or an individual or entity described in 

8 section 2(4)(B)(ii) to take any adverse action 

9 against any employee or applicant because the em10 ployee or applicant has exercised in good faith the 

11 rights protected under this section. 

12 (3) IMMIGRATION STATUS.—It shall be unlawful 

13 for any employer or an individual or entity described 

14 in section 2(4)(B)(ii) to communicate to an em15 ployee or applicant exercising rights protected under 

16 this section, directly or indirectly, the willingness to 

17 inform a government employee that the employee or 

18 applicant is not lawfully in the United States, or to 

19 report, or to make an implied or express assertion 

20 of a willingness to report, suspected citizenship or 

21 immigration status of an employee or applicant or 

22 family member of the employee or applicant to a 

23 Federal, State, or local agency because the employee 

24 has exercised a right under this section. 


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1 (b) RIGHTS OF EMPLOYEES.—The rights of an em2 ployee or applicant shall include the right to— 

3 (1) inform the employee’s employer, union, or 

4 similar organization, or the applicant or employee’s 

5 legal counsel or any other person about an alleged 

6 violation of this Act; 

7 (2) file any charge, or institute or cause to be 

8 instituted any proceeding, under or related to this 

9 Act, or otherwise take action in accordance with sec10 tion 6 relating to the enforcement of this Act; 

11 (3) cooperate in investigations under or relating 

12 to this Act, including by giving or preparing to give 

13 information in connection with any inquiry or pro14 ceeding under or related to this Act; 

15 (4) testify in any inquiry or proceeding under 

16 or related to this Act; and 

17 (5) refuse to participate in, or otherwise oppose, 

18 any policy, practice, or act that is unlawful under 

19 this Act. 

20 (c) PRESUMPTION OF RETALIATION.—There shall be 

21 a rebuttable presumption that retaliation has occurred in 

22 violation of this section if an employer or an individual 

23 or entity described in section 2(4)(B)(ii) takes an adverse 

24 action against an employee or applicant during the period 

25 that is 2 years after the date on which that employee or 


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1 applicant exercised rights protected under this section. In 

2 the case of seasonal work, the presumption also applies 

3 if the employer or individual or entity described in section 

4 2(4)(B)(ii) fails to rehire a former employee at the next 

5 opportunity for work in the same position. The employer 

6 or individual or entity described in section 2(4)(B)(ii) may 

7 rebut the presumption with clear and convincing evidence 

8 that the adverse action was taken for a permissible pur9 pose. 

10 (d) PROTECTIONS FOR GOOD FAITH ALLEGA11 TIONS.—The protections afforded under this section shall 

12 apply to any individual who mistakenly but in good faith 

13 alleges a violation of this section or section 3. 

14 (e) EXPLICIT REFERENCE NOT REQUIRED.—A com15 plaint or other communication by an employee or any ap16 plicant may be an action described in subsection (b) that 

17 gives rise to the protections described in this section re18 gardless of whether the complaint or communication is in 

19 writing or makes explicit reference to this Act. 

20 SEC. 5. POSTING OF NOTICES. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Each employer shall, not later 

22 than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, 

23 post, and keep posted, in a conspicuous place upon the 

24 premises of the employer a notice, to be prepared or ap25 proved by the Commission, setting forth information as 


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1 the Commission determines appropriate to effectuate the 

2 purposes of this Act, including the pertinent provisions of 

3 this Act and information pertinent to the filing of a charge 

4 with the Commission. 

5 (b) PENALTY.—A willful violation of this section shall 

6 be punishable by a fine of not more than $100 for each 

7 day on which the violation continues. 

8 SEC. 6. ENFORCEMENT. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (c), sections 

10 3 and 4 of this Act shall be enforced by the Commission 

11 in the same manner and by the same means, including 

12 with the same jurisdiction, as the enforcement of a viola13 tion of title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 

14 2000e et seq.). Violations of this Act may be established 

15 through proof of disparate treatment, harassment, or dis16 parate impact. 

17 (b) ACTION BY THE COMMISSION.—Except as other18 wise specified in this Act, the Commission shall receive, 

19 investigate, attempt to resolve, and otherwise enforce a 

20 charge of a violation of section 3 or 4 of this Act in the 

21 same manner that the Commission receives, investigates, 

22 attempts to resolve, and enforces a charge of a violation 

23 of title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. 

24 (c) PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION.—Notwithstanding 

25 subsection (a) and section 706 of the Civil Rights Act of 


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1 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e–5), a private right of action shall 

2 also be available to an applicant or individual who alleges 

3 a violation of section 3 or 4 of this Act. Such applicant 

4 or individual shall not be required to file a charge with 

5 the Commission or pursue or exhaust any administrative 

6 remedies before instituting a civil action. 

7 (d) PENALTIES.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—In addition to sums that 

9 may otherwise be collected by an aggrieved indi10 vidual or collected by the Commission and paid to an 

11 aggrieved individual, any person who willfully vio12 lates section 3 or 4 shall upon conviction thereof be 

13 subject to a penalty of an amount not to exceed— 

14 (A) $10,000 for each violation of section 3; 

15 and 

16 (B) $5,000 for each violation of section 4. 

17 (2) TRANSFER OF FUNDS.—Any penalties col18 lected by the Commission under this subsection shall 

19 be transferred to the Family Caregiver Antidiscrimi20 nation Fund. 

21 (e) FAMILY CAREGIVER ANTIDISCRIMINATION

22 FUND.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—There is established in the 

24 Treasury of the United States a revolving fund, to 

25 be known as the ‘‘Family Caregiver AntidiscriminaVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:44 Nov 30, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5136.IS S5136

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1 tion Fund’’ (referred to in this Act as the ‘‘Fund’’), 

2 consisting of the amount of penalties transferred to 

3 the Fund under subsection (d)(2). 

4 (2) USE OF FUNDS.—Amounts in the Fund 

5 shall be available for the purpose of awarding grants 

6 under section 7. 

7 SEC. 7. GRANTS. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

9 (1) GRANT PROGRAM ESTABLISHED.—The 

10 Commission, shall award grants, on a competitive 

11 basis, to eligible entities to enable those eligible enti12 ties to assist in preventing and combating discrimi13 nation against applicants and employees who have 

14 family caregiver responsibilities. 

15 (2) DURATION.—A grant awarded under this 

16 section shall be for a period of 3 years. 

17 (b) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—In this section, the term ‘‘el18 igible entity’’ means— 

19 (1) a nonprofit organization with expertise in 

20 family caregiver discrimination; 

21 (2) an institution of higher education or re22 search center that employs faculty with relevant ex23 pertise or that has expertise in family caregiver dis24 crimination; or 


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1 (3) a consortium of entities described in para2 graphs (1) and (2) that submit a single application 

3 to carry out activities under the grant jointly. 

4 (c) APPLICATION.—An eligible entity desiring a grant 

5 under this section shall submit an application to the Com6 mission at such time, in such manner, and containing such 

7 information as the Commission may require. 

8 (d) USE OF FUNDS.—An eligible entity receiving a 

9 grant under this section shall use grant funds to carry 

10 out one or more of the following activities: 

11 (1) Educate employees about the prohibited ac12 tions under section 3, caregiver rights, and the 

13 rights provided under this Act. 

14 (2) Conduct educational training for employers 

15 regarding caregiver discrimination. 

16 (3) Provide support to applicants and employ17 ees who are facing or who have faced discrimination 

18 based on family caregiver responsibilities. 

19 (4) Produce and disseminate outreach and 

20 training materials relating to the prohibited actions 

21 under section 3, caregiver rights, and the rights pro22 vided under this Act. 

23 (5) Recruit and hire staff and volunteers to 

24 carry out the activities described in this subsection. 


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1 (6) Any other activities that the Commission 

2 determines are reasonable. 

3 (e) REPORT.—Not later than 12 months after the 

4 completion of the programs and activities funded under 

5 grants awarded under this section, the Commission shall 

6 submit to Congress, and all appropriate agencies, a report 

7 concerning an evaluation of the results of such programs 

8 and activities, including best practices, and lessons derived 

9 from the experiences of grantees. 

10 (f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

11 are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are nec12 essary to carry out this section. 

13 SEC. 8. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 

14 Nothing in this Act shall be construed to supersede 

15 any other provision of Federal, State, or local law that 

16 provides greater protection against employment discrimi17 nation or greater remedies to employees than the protec18 tion or remedies provided to employees under this Act, in19 cluding any such provision in the Family and Medical 

20 Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2601 et seq.), the Ameri21 cans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et 

22 seq.), title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 

23 2000e et seq.), or section 6(d) of the Fair Labor Stand24 ards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206(d)). 

Æ 


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