I had a chance to say what I could about Asperger's, how my doctor said it played a role in what I did. I was asked why it wasn't brought up before or while I was working there, and I told them it's because for the most part it was just a preliminary opinion and it wasn't a problem in my working there. When the labor relations guy said that if I didn't understand what I did wrong, then there's something wrong with me - I took it upon myself to finally find out what it was. I also felt the statement was very hurtful. He didn't care - it was his job to think for Rick when it came to firing people because Rick can't think on his own.
Asperger's was the reason I was treated differently. The one guy said Rick "had issues" with me - but he never came to me to tell me what they were!! I don't know what I did that made him hate me. All he needed was an excuse to fire me and they chomped on one.
The one union guy Joe said he hadn't heard about Asperger's before I mentioned it to him in that appeal letter they read, so he pulled up some info off the net - it looked like it was from Wikipedia. He contacted the corporate guy about it and my situation. The Corporate Guy - who is NOT A LICENSED PSYCHIATRIST MIND YOU - said he _doubted_ Asperger's played a role in what I did and that _it was too late now_ to bring it up. Yeah, right.
My licensed psychiatrist - I did name them - said it did. People with Asperger's can develop obsessions about things. It can be anything. In this case, it was an obsession with discounted cereal. It would not have mattered if I told someone else or not.
I found out that the thing Rick had an issue with the most was over the gift card.
I have a disability that will affect my capability to hold a steady job and I am trying to file for SSI or SSDI. The "voluntary" statement the loss prevention guy got out of me was entirely coerced and I felt that if I did what they asked, that the issue would be resolved and I'd get to work again. Joe seemed to feel the same way, but Rick being the asshole he is, wouldn't let me come back. Ron H misrepresented his "interests" and intents. I even asked him point blank if I was in trouble and he made it seem like he needed my help. Yeah right, I "helped" him get me fired for unjust reasons.
I made a point of showing them that while the Employee Handbook _mentions_ the Accu-scan policy, the actual policy is not spelled out nor any clear info on what constitutes as "abuse." If I had known that, we wouldn't be in this situation. At any rate, there was an entirely different book used at that July 25th meeting. Ron H tried to get me on the bit of "Employees are subject to the same purchase limits as customers," but they all knew that wouldn't stick. It took them over 2 weeks to figure out what else to call it.
Joe read off a statement that was concocted by the labor relations guy. The only purpose that served was to show what position the store had. There were 3 other people in the rank-and-file members on the board tonight. One was from Boardman, and another from Youngstown. I don't remember where the other woman was from. I don't think they believe I have Asperger's, but then they're not trained to know how to spot it. My doctor said Aspeger's people can hide the symptoms well away from home - but to the people who live with them, they see it as clear as any trained and licensed psychiatrist.
And my problem is, very few people take the time to get to know me past the things I do because of Asperger's. Those who do know me are good friends.
I should not have gotten in trouble for a mistake the store made.
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