When Debra Shafer’s 6-year-old son was diagnosed with autism, her career as a human resources executive began to suffer as she struggled to get her son to five weekly therapy sessions, plus testing and evaluations. At first, her supervisor was understanding, but then began to ask Shafer when the ordeal would be over. Shafer soon found herself left out of meetings and cut out of emails, and eventually she was laid off. She is now a special-education consultant.

Shafer’s experience is unfortunately representative of employees who care for family members with disabilities. Recently, more attention to caregiver’s rights has been emerging in the courts. Recent rulings promise fairer treatment for working parents, and clearer guidelines for how to manage them.

The problem is widespread. In a 2004 survey of 349 parents of children with emotional or behavioral disorders, 27% said they had been fired at some point because of work disruptions stemming from their children’s special needs and 48% said they had quit their jobs to care for their kids.

The wording of the Americans with Disabilities Act doesn’t specifically require employers to make any special accommodations for parents of children with special needs. A 2004 ruling by a federal appeals court in Chicago maps out areas where employers might be vulnerable to charges of discrimination against caregivers to the disabled. For example, parents can’t be fired, demoted, or harassed because they are “somewhat inattentive” at work. Employees who might be distracted by their family needs, but still manage to get their work done are protected under the law.

A 2005 ruling suggests that even revoking a parent’s flexible schedule can be illegal under certain circumstances, for example, when the parent is caring for a child with special needs.