Dyspraxic Adults

Hello all,

So. Today has been an awful day for my work-life.

I have worked for a freight forwarding company for the last 9 months. My performance has been on and off, but there have definately been issues brought on by my Dyspraxia.

The job involves multi-tasking and is a very high-paced and pressurised environment at times. I have adapted to some elements of it but my attention to detail in high pressured situations has let me down. There have been issues where bookings made by customers have been late or incorrect, due to the fact that whilst handling the files, I've missed little bits of information or reference numbers that might be obvious to others. In tracking the large numbers of ongoing jobs, I've missed or been late in picking up bits of info and this has also caused problems. Also, due to the nature of the work I have historically been a little behind in terms of productivity.

The issues were first brought up in November '17, after which I chose to disclose my Dyspraxia. The company paid for me to go to a private clinic and see a doctor. (I have been diagnosed since childhood but they clearly wanted their own, independent assessment) After this, they asked me to put in place some steps to tell them how I could change my working practice to overcome the problems I had.

Anyway, these issues have improved to an extent and my productivity has gotten better over the last few weeks. However, clearly not enough. Yesterday I was given a letter explaining that my boss and another of my managers wanted to have a meeting with me in order to have a "capability investigation".

Today I turned up to the meeting and they asked for more information on what was going on, why there were certain issues still and how I felt my Dyspraxia was affecting that. They asked me where I was up to, confirmed that my productivity had increased and that there had been no new issues with the bookings that I was making. Then, they dropped a hammer on me...

The boss told me that the second part of the meeting was off the record. He handed me a Settlement arrangement, offering to pay me a bit of money, plus a month in Lieu. They want an answer to it in 24 hrs, meaning that I have to somehow get to see a solicitor tomorrow (?!?!?) and then give my answer by tomorrow evening. After this, we will either mutually terminate the contract or they will let me know what the findings of the "investigation" are. I'm not sure what that means, but I presume that (based upon the tome of the meeting and the problems that I have had) it is basically a way of saying "go before you are pushed".

I have had heightened stress/anxiety since starting this job last July and this is only making it worse. What can I do? You feel like the most useless person in the world when this happens to you. I know that I have talents, but they so easily get hidden by the Dyspraxia and it gets the better of me. Why do I keep on screwing up like this? I''ve had issues before related to performance/speed.

Anyway, sorry all for the rant. I had to get that off my chest.

JKMarshal

I wd hope they are legaĺly obliged to give you longer but it being off the record suggests they may be acting illegally. If you don't have a Union Rep I would suggest ACAS or even calling the DWP or Jobcentre for advice.

I'm so sorry you are in this situation. I know how awful it can make you feel, I had a similar situation since last July, and I resigned in February. I can't offer any legal advice because I'm not British and I know nothing of the laws in England. But i can say that I know exactly how this feels. I like what you said about knowing that you have talents but they are often masked by dyspraxia. I think that is very true of me as well. Focus on those talents and use them to your advantage; that is, for your self esteem as well as for your future in terms of a new job, career, or even for exploration of possible self employment. Whatever you do know that you have support and that people do care. Best of luck, and hang in there. Keep us posted please.

JKMarshal wrote:Hello all,

The boss told me that the second part of the meeting was off the record. He handed me a Settlement arrangement, offering to pay me a bit of money, plus a month in Lieu. They want an answer to it in 24 hrs, meaning that I have to somehow get to see a solicitor tomorrow (?!?!?) and then give my answer by tomorrow evening. After this, we will either mutually terminate the contract or they will let me know what the findings of the "investigation" are. I'm not sure what that means, but I presume that (based upon the tome of the meeting and the problems that I have had) it is basically a way of saying "go before you are pushed".

I'm sorry to hear of your trouble. It's something I've personally experienced too many times.

What I will say is that if they are letting you go, it most certainly stays on the record. Don't let them tell you otherwise. Because they're hoping you leave with your tail between your legs without a whimper. It's called deniability, and in this case that would be illegal.

Make it clear to them that it stays on the record for your own protection.

You need their severence offer in writing, clearly outlining the reasons for this decision. Once you have this, you need somebody to assess this against the Discrimination Act. If you're a trade union member, they can help. As can an employment lawyer.