Autism and Employment

In my story, "Autism and Transition into Adulthood", I stated that I looked for a job for a year and felt the darkness within and like I could not get out. I started working at Old Navy this year, and you're probably wondering how it is possible for me, a lowly little Autistic person like me, could ever get a job. How on Earth is little old me supposed to work anywhere? Surly, this had to be a mistake! But the Universe never makes mistakes.

Before I started working at Old Navy, I worked at a summer camp for children through adults called Spectrum Camps and Clubs, a summer camp program for those on the spectrum. I gained a lot of invaluable experience working with all kinds of children and youth through adults, ranging from higher needs to lower needs. I also once worked at a school called The Bridge of Monroe, Georgia, with young children on the Autism spectrum as well. Both places taught me what it is like to work in a diverse environment, as well as working with each individual's different needs. Those were both between 2015 and 2020. I understand a lot about Autism and different temperaments from both jobs.

Afterwards in July, 2019, I started my transition into adulthood at the age of 23. I went through the Georgia Vocational Rehabilitation Agency, (GVRA for short) to help me find a job. The GVRA job counselor I had at the time, who I will just call John, got me started on the path forward. I will never forget John and will always thank him for helping me as much as he could. When he left the agency, he was replaced by Ruth, who helped me the rest of the way.

One thing I learned through working with GVRA is that one must call them and email them every single day to keep the ball rolling, so to speak. If you do not call them consistently, they will not help you or it will take a lot longer than it should. This is probably so that they see who is a good job candidate, as one also has to keep calling and emailing the front offices of all the places he or she is applying to. When GVRA does not answer or do very much without contacting them constantly, it may be a training technique they use to get clients used to the idea of waiting, calling, emailing, and waiting some more in order to understand that that is what looking for a job is like.

I was later enrolled in the Goodwill Career program, where I worked five days a week at $7.25 an hour for free job training. While I was there, I learned about appropriate grooming and hygiene, good behavior, good workplace eddiquit, job interview skills, as well as soft skills for keeping a job.

I learned about proper sanitation techniques, such as sweeping, mopping, dusting, cleaning tables and chairs, vacuuming, taking out the trash, cleaning mirrors and windows, as well as sorting women's shoes and colorizing women's shirts and blouses. I also learned about doing recovery, which means putting away all the clothing, toys, and other merchandise where they belong. Finally, I learned about running things out to the sales floor.

All of the aforementioned things I learned taught me not only proper sanitation techniques, but also better time management skills, better organizational skills, more patience, better communication skills (for example, talking to a customer and helping him or her locate something), along with other important skills which are applicable to any job. These also include, but are not limited to communicating with coworkers and the supervisor, working on projects together, and teamwork. Lastly, I learned what not to do at a real job, which I will discuss in the next paragraph.

In the workplace, one does not tell another employee what to do or what not to do, especially when he or she is closer in age. A good example is, do not talk to another employee about the problem and how to do their job if you are not their boss or supervisor; this will only upset them and make them not want to be around you, anymore. It is no fun! Also, one does not go snooping around in the locker of said employee, just because one suspects him or her of stealing.

Yes, I caught one of my coworkers red handed stealing potential merchandise and reported it to my supervisor. But what I did was very serious; I looked inside her bag and found the item I caught her stealing. That is not my place! Only the managers and supervisors may look inside an employee's locker for suspected theft; the employee who witnessed it only has to report it to the boss or manager. How would you like it if another coworker looked inside your locker? I will let you answer that.

Another thing I learned while at Goodwill is how to look for a job online. I used the Goodwill Career Finder as well as Indeed and LinkedIn. The more I looked online for a job, the more hopeless and frustrated I became. Nothing made any sense to me, because I kept getting emails from different employers about jobs, but then nothing else happened. I came in for job interviews dressed appropriately and smiled and shook hands with the employers, but then I never heard back. Other times, I never heard back for even an interview. I became very discouraged and was in the darkness alone. I cried a lot during the hard time and the long struggle I had been through all winter and spring.

In July and August, 2020, my job coach, Nakya, helped me get a job at long last. I got a phone interview from the hiring manager of Old Navy and she told me to come in for the orientation. I happened to be at Walmart shopping with my mom, feeling very sad and disappointed at the time, until I was told to come in for the orientation. That is a day I will never forget.

The employer I spoke to on the phone said that I can work seasonally, unless I do really well. Then, I can be hired permanently. I will have to talk to the new manager about that on my next shift. Speaking of shifts, one can use the Shyft app on his or her mobile phone to pick up extra shifts. While it was confusing at first, I now have gotten the hang of it.

Speaking of confusion, I had no idea what to do at first. I had excellent training at Old Navy and I now have a much better understanding of the job than when I started. I have worked at Old Navy for one month now. It has been a great fit for me, especially since this is my first job.

I have been doing similar things like I did at Goodwill, such as work Facilities. Facilities is a lot like the cleaning I did at the job training. On Facilities, I clean the bathrooms, clean the fitting rooms, clean the cash wrap, (cash registers, phones, and other things), dust and sweep the entire store, take out the trash, and also clean the breakroom, including the microwave and refrigerator. Another part of Facilities is cleaning the price checkers, clean the mirrors and the windows, and spot mop anywhere there are stains, as well as spot clean the glass doors up front and spot clean any stains that I see.

Another job they put me on frequently is the Shipment and Product Placement. My duties in that area include unpacking boxes, folding or hanging clothing, and sorting shoes, socks, and accessories into different plastic bins. The other components are to break down boxes and throw out the full trash bags and replace them with new ones. I also sometimes run things out to the sales floor in specific places.

I also work Fitting Rooms, which consists of greeting customers as they come in to try on clothing and taking anything the customer did not want to purchase and process it again by folding or hanging said items while someone else runs them back out so that I can stay in the fitting room area. The other thing I have to do is to remove clothing and empty coat hangers and put them back in the appropriate place in the closet where we work to help run the items back to the sales floor. Finally, I have to clean the door nobs, fixtures, and seats, not to mention the railings in the handicapped fitting rooms.

All of these duties have taught me even more skills, such as organization, time management, communication, flexibility, and so on. I learned from my mistakes from the Goodwill job training and did not make the same mistakes again. I have also matured so much more because of this job.

I have improved at home as well. It has helped me to look at things from the perspective of everyone else instead of my own narrow minded way. As an Autistic person, this has been good character development.

In conclusion, I as an Autistic person have found a job doing things I am good at because I am detail oriented, thoughtful, and punctual. Some people on the Autism spectrum struggle to find a job, either because of discrimination in the workplace or because they keep defeating themselves, thinking, "No one will hire me because I'm on the spectrum." I used to think the same exact way and had to change my mindset. But that did not happen overnight. It it true that workplace discrimination and discrimination in hiring practices are real, but how can you get anywhere in life with a negative attitude about yourself? How do you know that no one will hire you if you do not try?

Finally, I want to spread hope to the Autistic community that you can get a job, as long as you keep trying and push past the discrimination. If black people can still find a job despite their skin color or hair type, then Autistic people can find a job despite having a disability.

I 100 percent agree that we still have to keep fighting the stigma of disabilities and that we have to train and educate employers about disabilities and continue to help those with special needs get better opportunities, but at the same time, it is equally as important to push forward and keep writing down your goals and keep applying to jobs. It is important to fight for change, but it is still important to take responsibility for your own success. Remember, you cannot do this without your own power. You have more power than you realize.