I need help!!!!
I was fighting my most recent termination stating there was more to the situation, and there were reasons, why I made the decisions I made. I have asked to be eligible to be rehired in there system, they said "no," because they reported the incident to state. Well, I do not accept this. They are not taking any responsibility, only playing "monkey pile on the autistic woman." I refuse to accept this. It looks like state is going to dismiss their allegations. They took this situation, and used it against me without giving me a chance to plan and give an explanation. I want to expose that company, picket it, whatever. I need to be heard. My professional career has been severly stained, and I need to do something about it. If anyone knows of any advocacy groups I can go to, or anything, please let me know. I refuse to let this go.
PS. I will be glad to give details, but it is a rather long story. Let me know and I can send a private message.
I wanted to add, in the case of the stress claim I witnessed, it was the general consensus where we worked that this woman had a large family to support, was a pillar of her community. My bosses decided she should be awarded the money because not to do so would have been cruel. How was she going to find another job in her condition? Sometimes these cases are decided on compassionate terms. Adminstrators do have hearts beating in their chests; they have to look themselves in a mirror in the morning just like the rest of us. My point is that working within a system can yield good results. So always give that a chance first!
I am not anybodies idea of an expert but the first thing to do is to write up the events as they happened while your memory is fresh. You will need a sympathetic friend to support you during this. Every time i tried to do it on my own i just feel ripped apart and it did not get done. If you don't have anyone you might find someone to help you do this here or in another online group.
Any legal representation will need a clear record of events to make a case as will anyone else who might be able to help you. To some extent the more detailed the better but just get in a rough draft first and then add pertinent details. As the case goes on you may need to flesh out more and more
By writing this down you will save time and effort for a lawyer or advocate and they will know what questions to ask to decide how to best proceed in your case.
It's painful but its best to get it behind you so you can take action. It will also help you clarify your thinking and feeling which can help you reduce the trauma you have experienced. The more trauma, the more drama, the worse you will feel. If you can get some therapy around this it can help too. I know that's a big IF.
Hi Lilligold, this is not an area of strength for me, so I'm not sure I can help. But I did want to say hello to you as a new member.
It might help us to know a little more about your situation, for example:
Where do you live? What system are you referring to? Was this a regular position with a private company, or was it a state position? Was it a facilitated position through the Dept. of Rehab? If through Rehab, there should be advocacy available to you.
Here in the US, each state has different advocacy organizations. And there are ways to appeal decisions made by state agencies. Forgive me for not knowing more. I was never in your position, and my son with autism is only 12.
Well, actually, I probably was in your position or something similar to it... once, when I was very young. I'd attended a company jogathon and was injured, tore a ligament. Weeks later, still on crutches, I was told that I was too injured to do the job and because I was a new employee on probation, technically they could yank my job without any justification. Which is what they did. And I was assured by attorneys in my family they had the right to do it. Pretty ironic.
If you have the money or have access to someone at a reduced rate, employment lawyers are a good idea. Were you part of a union? If so, perhaps your union has legal advocacy services? Legal aide societies tend to want to take on cases where obvious flaws were made. If you have a clear case of discrimination (don't just go with your gut; have an attorney advise you on this) and an attorney thinks you have a good case, perhaps a private attorney would work on a rewards basis, collecting from any money collected in the end. In the US, the ACLU will take some of these cases; with them, it has to be a very clear, very striking case of misconduct on the part of the business or state agency. And it takes time to apply to the ACLU and get a reply back. They get a ton of applications.
For several years, I was in management and had to hire and fire workers. Generally speaking, at least during the time period when I was doing all this, the laws were very much in favor of the employer, who in most cases really can hire and fire at will. If they are skilled at writing it all up, they can find any number of loopholes in the law. It's good at least any charges against you are dropped. I'm not sure it's enough, though.
Technically, if one has cleared the 3-6 month new employee probationary period at the start of a job (again California law, similar but not identical to other state laws; often new employees can be fired for no reason at all) there is supposed to be some sort of make-it-right probationary period (at least in California) where workers are given the opportunity to improve their skills. Where I worked, that was three months, and in other companies sometimes it's six months. If you were fired summarily (after one offense), then legally the offense (what you did wrong, supposedly) would need to involve serious dereliction of duty. I don't think these guidelines are fixed in stone. There is wide room for interpretation, which is part of the problem, and why I really think you would need to speak with an attorney.
Where I worked, serious dereliction of duty might include:
Not showing up for work for three or more days in a row without explaining why and without a medical excuse. That'll pretty much do you in anywhere.
In my field, taking close-up photographs/video of people's faces and using them in publications or the media without signed consent forms.
Creating a public nuisance, assault, threats, etc.
Taking money from a cash box or drawer. And/or "cooking the books" to cover up a loss. Or any similar "fraud."
If it is not possible for you to get your job back, sometimes stress claims can be fairly successful, if you can show you were asked to do things your autism made difficult for you and if those difficulties were carefully documented (in writing by your employer and especially if you have copies of that documentation).
I witnessed a stress claim in process. My colleague got a year's pay as a cash reward for pain and suffering. She actually had not been asked to lift anything heavy. It was clearly known she had back problems and that she could not be held responsible for anything like that. But she felt such pressure to complete a job and had no one to call on (the file clerk took a lunch break on her), so she took her chances and was injured. She won a stress claim for that one. If you ask me, I think she was at least partly at fault and really should have waited for the file clerk to return.
In my opinion, picketing is not going to help unless you are part of a class action lawsuit and/or have a lot of friends, including personalities who are very well connected in ways that matter to whomever it is who is in charge. Without a groundswell of support behind you, there is a big risk you will just appear crazy, and it's not a good way to inspire media or public support. Media relations was a big part of my job, by the way. Solitary picketers tend mainly to make onlookers uncomfortable. It's better, much better to have legal help so that you can determine if you do have a strong case. As much as possible, work within the system to advocate for yourself. Then when you have exhausted your appeals and clearly sought redress as expected, you will be more sympathetic if you decide to take this in a more unorthodox direction. Just my two cents.
Just sharing about the little bit I know about, and it's a very little bit, about a very specific part of the world. Giving us a little more information might I think give you more specific advice about where to turn for help. I wish you well!