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Employment issues if you have processing problems, please help.

2 replies

Ratherconcernedmum · 20/07/2014 12:13

My DS who's 17 has according to an ed psych assessment an IQ that puts him in the top 5% but a processing problem that puts him in the bottom 2% and a working memory problem that puts him in the bottom 10%. He recently got a Saturday job (1st job) in our only local independent corner shop/super market (he's at college awaiting AS results) I was over the moon. After a three month trial period he was sacked Sad. Why because "he kept asking how to do things", like process utility keys etc. cleaning coffee machine. He cannot process spoken information very well and follow more than one set of instructions at a time, he is unable to filter out certain noises, high pitch clicky noises, and he is hypersensisitive to people's emotions so if they're irritated that he doesn't grasp things immediately he panics and loses his confidence (which is not good at the best of times). Any detailed instructions up until now mainly homework need to be written down (it never was but that's another thread), and he needs to learn things where possible in a quiet environment and be given time to do this. Once he's grasped something he'll never forget it, he has an extraordinary memory able to remember single lines in books plays films etc and micro detail and he would take it seriously. I can understand that from this employers perspective he was not a great employee and looked like he lacked initiative. On a positive note he was exceedingly reliable always turning up on time, he's personable, exceedingly articulate and very creative and imaginative. Should he have told an employer about his problems? I can't see a small shop wanting to waste time helping him but if he applied to a larger organisation e.g. Tesco would they be more sympathetic? He's really lost his confidence now, any suggestions about what or where he could look for work, he doesn't really need the money, just the experience I was wondering about voluntary work. Perhaps with the NT or something similar where he could use his creative skills better.

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OddFodd · 20/07/2014 17:54

My DS who is only 7 has very similar issues to yours - he has dyspraxia. I think you need to tell any potential employer about a disability so that they can make the necessary reasonable adjustments.

DS has to have everything written down because his verbal processing is really weak (and his working memory) but his visual processing is phenomenal and he is great at memorising huge chunks of text.

I was talking to a friend of mine whose DD has similar issues and we both agreed that mundane shop work is a really difficult thing for someone with dyspraxia to do. So either a different sort of job (just being on the till might be ok) or adjustments but I don't think you can just expect him to cope like an NT teenager

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headlesslambrini · 20/07/2014 18:02

Voluntary work would be good but i would ask the employer if you could attend for the first week or so in order to write a set of instructions for him to follow each day. He could then write down any issues as he goes along and you have an idea of how to help/explain this to him. Alternatively you could try to organise a job coach to be with him until he is confident with the job role. The access to work fund may be able to help with this.

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