Massachusetts, like other States, is trying to protect the privacy and employment rights of AIDS carriers while at the same time protecting public health. The Massachusetts Fair Employment Practices Act, modeled on the Federal Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1973, prohibits discrimination based on handicap status. The Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination has issued an AIDS policy that applies the protections of the Fair Employment Law to persons afflicted with AIDS or regarded as having the disease. Under Massachusetts law, AIDS will likely be perceived as a handicap by the courts. An employer has no duty to inform employees that a coworker suffers from AIDS. Under Massachusetts law, no employer can make an AIDS test a condition of employment. AIDS screening of employees already on the payroll may violate privacy rights. Further, employers must restrict access and disclosure of medical information concerning AIDS in the workforce in order to avoid defamation suits. Several defenses are cited which employers use who have chosen not to employ AIDS carriers. Employees who refuse to work with an AIDS-infected person will probably not find support for their action in the National Labor Relations Act. Employers and unions are advised to work together to educate employees on the medical aspects of AIDS. While employees may fear working with AIDS coworkers, there is no medical evidence to date that the disease can be transmitted by casual contact. 88 footnotes.