Do I have a legal case?

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That is true if a complaint is pursued federally. Depending on the aggrieved individual’s location of residence, state and local laws as well as common law, can sometimes prohibit preferential treatment of employees by workplace supervisors regardless of status. Evidence of preferential treatment is usually enough to pursue a complaint.

Yes, evidence is the key. But who is going to testify on behalf of the sole person who is allegedly being discriminated against? What if the lack of evidence and testimony implies that the discrimination is all in the mind of the alleged victim? What if it turns out that the alleged victim purposely fabricated the whole situation? What if the alleged victim in such a case is really just looking for attention and sympathy?

Again, the OP would be better off to seek legal counsel than to seek whatever it is he or she is seeking from us.

Yes, discussing a complaint with a lawyer or even an administrative-law attorney is always the first step in pursuing a resolution. But, there is some value that comes from discussing hypothetical complaints; it teaches others the general methods that help resolve (or avoid) their own complaints.

Regarding your question about "who is going to testify on behalf of the sole person who is allegedly being discriminated against," I am reminded of my own pursuit of a complaint after I resigned from employment with a county-government office. My complaint was affirmed by a state administrative-law judge (ALJ). I argued that my workplace had been hostile because of the actions (yelling, demanding, belittling, humiliating, ridiculing and threatening) in which my supervisor engaged regarding me. Some years later, the county government was sued by several women who worked in the same office, and complained about the sexual harassment practiced by the supervisor. I offered to the women a copy of my ALJ opinion which showed prior evidence of creating a hostile workplace. In combination, our two complaints had convinced the supervisor to resign. So, in my own experience, pursuing a complaint of a hostile workplace based only on intimidation, slander and professional threats ended up giving me a legal affirmation, and helping several women win their day in court against the same supervisor.

Fnord - I'm not here to argue, and I never intended for this thread to derail so badly. But I don't like feeling unheard. I do notice that your response, while well-stated and logical, did seem to skim over a couple of points that I made in previous posts. I'm not going to argue with you, and I'm not going to antagonize you if you choose to respond further, but I do want to make sure you understood my experience completely before making judgements of legal base. Also, I thank AspieUtah for picking up the legal jargon here.

You spoke of federal qualifiers for a "hazardous workplace." That's not the type of legal case I'm trying to make here, but I do have a repetitive motion injury, which was the catalyst for the workplace to put me on leave. We were not given training on proper lifting or knife safety, either, if you think that's relevant to the injury portion.

As for the "hostile workplace" bit, I'm just going to put a couple of my own quotes here to refocus the picture on how the treatment I received affected my conditions:

This isn't the sort of thing I experience when I'm "talked down to" or ignored or otherwise simply "casually mistreated" on a day to day basis. I am in regular counseling and psychiatry, my conditions are generally well-managed, and I have not had a gap in employment for years. The working world, and the people in it, are nothing new to me. I've said time and time again that I didn't want to disclose real details here, but I do have evidence, HR has that evidence, as well as knowledge of at least one of the employee's prior misconduct of targeting others for their differences in the past. These people use slurs in their conversations, it's not just because of "weirdness." I'm using the politically correct term of "targeting others for their perceived differences" as a euphemism for the fact that I experienced targeted attacks from three of my coworkers who enforced their brief face-to-face judgements through condescension and isolation on top of other behavior.

I am seeking legal counsel. I stated that in my second or third post, after which this entire thread got derailed about the nitty-gritty regarding whether or not what I faced was actually discrimination. I'm LGBT as well, and I'm pretty sure I know the difference between discrimination and a rough personality.

Well by all means sue if your feelings were hurt. That's what the legal system is there for. Hurt, invalidated feelings.

You seem to have a knack for getting off on the wrong foot. Forums, jobs, maybe other places. I'd take it down a notch Skippy.

To be honest I was worried my youngest so, who is your age if your age is correct on your profile, would act similarly when he got a job. all through high school he took anything teachers said the wrong way. He got mad over literally nothing a few times. More than a few. He's the one I suspect may have AS like me, but he's not interested in finding out. He got a real job at a factory when he was 19. We all waited for the inevitable because he complained about this and that. And everything. Then he got that paycheck and said "who gives a s**t what people say" and moved out of here and in with his gf since he had money. He's been working since and toned some things down. He's learned that just because he's got a knee jerk reaction to something feelingswise, doesn't mean those feelings represent fact. They are subjective and many times they change when he sits down calm and looks at things.

Now from what you mentioned it doesn't sound like you have family around to try and help you calm the hell down and not fly off the handle like we did him all those years. I hate that you didn't. You might be better adjusted if you did but you can still learn to. It's a skill everybody needs, even us precious and special aspies. My son has social skills and is very good at getting his thoughts and feelings across but it doesn't sound like you do. Again, it's not too late.

Now your little fits and yelling and all may work in your little circle there, especially if you threaten lawsuits but in the rest of the world they won't. It's actually probably going to get you talked down to. I don't care if you dislike it, I said this to you not to hear myself type or to invalidate and damage or whatever but so you might learn something if you choose to. I hope you do. If you don't then it's no skin off my nose and won't bother me at all. I'd like to think if my kid needed to hear something he didn't want to that somebody would take the time to tell him instead of letting him run off half cocked and scream and complain for the rest of his life and not get anywhere.

So maybe you'll hear what I actually said and maybe you won't. I hope you do. I don't expect it though.

@All: If there are two ways to take what is said - a good way, and a bad way - then you should opt for the good way every time. Thinking that everything said is bad in some way is a good way to lose friends, to lose jobs, and to lose respect.

@Lostboy94: Present your case to a lawyer or to the National Labor Relations Board. If they won't take it, then tell it to the Marines.

Watch out, you're making too much sense and being too logical.

I am disgusted at the re-bullying of someone who is simply asking a question -- among his very first posts at WrongPlanet.net.

I have to wonder what the site's owner, Alex Plank, would have to say about the claims and statements made by a few about the OP.

This is the perfect example of why I hate this site. It has never lived up to its promises let alone its potential, in my opinion.

Nobody is bullying anyone. I'm trying to get it across to him that adults in the working world are expected to deal with small slights and being slightly offended from time to time. Everybody has to. Also I'm trying to get it across to him that you don't go to work to be validated and made to feel good. That's what therapy, family and friends are for. Work is there to do a job and make money. If he can't get that figured out soon then he's going to have problems along these lines his whole life.

If you actually think that the real world is going to worry about small incidents and signings like "we aren't in school anymore" or treat tone of voice as a lawsuit worthy issue and if you think it is a lawsuit worthy issue then I'm afraid you're going to have problems too.

The world doesn't work that way and this is far from bullying. Just because someone is offended doesn't make it bullying or even an actual problem. People have to learn to deal with unpleasantness. Even those of us on the spectrum. This, and from what he described in his post - the incidents at his job, are not harassment nor someone out to get him.

Growing up is something everyone has to do if they want to function out in the world with other adults. That's just how it is.

The behaviors that many adults ascribe to children (bullying, hitting, demanding cash payments to avoid hitting, name-calling, teasing, fighting, taking, graffitiing and other damaging, among others) have more accurate names when the same behaviors are displayed by adults (intimidation, assault, extortion, defamation of libel and/or slander, ridicule, violence and threat of violence, robbery and vandalism). These legal terms are actionable when their perpetrators are adults, but ignored when they are children? Why?

So, it is no different when a workplace supervisor or coworker behaves similarly. Sure, they call it "having fun" "meaningless" or "just goofing around." But the actual lawful terms aren't so funny.

Having been a federal hate-crime advisor, I am fully aware of the line between "goofing around" and actionable crimes. While we can and should be discussing the nuances of the OP post, at what point did dismissing its claims and statements in insulting ways become acceptable?

lmao okay OliveOilMom, you clearly didn't read anything I said after you decided that my "attitude" was a tone I applied to every interaction in my life, and if you're saying all of this isn't gonna bother you, frankly why are you even here in this thread anymore. Maybe my tone was too formal for you to interpret as questioning and civil, but you're making me laugh at this point. Maybe it's time for you to move on so others can speak? It's not your thread haha. And frankly thanks AspieUtah, I had hoped that this forum would be helpful rather than somewhere I'd get into a discourse, but OliveOilMom seems to have singlehandedly ruined that for me. I'll be moving on, now, best of luck to ya in the future.

OliveOilMom - you have some growing up to do still, too. Arguing with people less than half your age on a forum over their tone is hardly a mature use of time

You seem like an intelligent guy.

Of course you've thought about going to college?

I was an order picker once....and I had a similar situation as you. What I did: I quit the job and sought to get a better job in an office. I was threatened. I was told similar things to what were told to you.

Nowadays, it's probably more important that people go to college to obtain a degree. Some jobs require the Bachelor's now--in anything. It doesn't matter.

Thanks for sharing your experience, kraftiekortie. I have completed a year of college and took some time off due to a deterioration in my non-ASD-related mental health, but I am back in school now and am actually increasing my credit hours this fall. Still a few years to go for me, though, as I can't afford to go full-time with room and board because the FAFSA still determines me to be a "dependent" student despite my parents' finances in no way connecting to my own.

As long as you're keeping up the progress, then it's cool.

Jobs like yours are crap jobs. The supervisors/managers within these jobs tend to be embittered because they didn't get an opportunity to better themselves. They have a different mindset from us. They can sense when somebody wants to better themselves; thus, they become jealous and do the things they did to you.

Just wait it out, my friend. Maybe apply at Costco should you have one nearby. You make decent money with Costco...and they have a good corporate culture, too. You might find idiots there, too. But it's less likely.

No you weren't too formal for me, I actually read you in my son's "voice" as how I had been scared he would end up about work. While he didn't turn out like that and he grew up and learned that the line for being too offended and taking action wasn't where he had drawn it in high school, you were like that and I wanted to speak up and try to help you see that too.

I'm also not arguing with you, I'm talking. Taking a different position and stating it and trying to explain it can also be discussion as well as arguing. The fact that you saw it in a negative way, like you saw my original comments as hostile and hurtful when they were simply a different viewpoint tells me that you seem to be on the lookout for anything that might offend you. That isn't a good thing to do because things will always turn to s**t for you if you do that.

In life you have to learn to put up with stuff that you don't like or that upsets you. The way to do that is to just make yourself let go of minor things, like disliking the tone of someone's voice or saying "we aren't in school anymore", and just move on and wait and see if the person is actually decent to you in the future or just seems like a douche. If they are a douche bag, and many are, just interact with them as little as possible and live your life. Letting people like that ruin something does nothing for you. It's legal to be rude and a jackass, and the only recourse you have with them is to tell them off without stepping over the line that divides minor BS and legal harassment and threats yourself. It's possible and it's even the best course of action many times but it's not best every time, like when they are your boss and you want to keep your job.

If you can't learn to suck it up and be an adult sometimes when it's best to then you will never accomplish anything. This reaction you had, where you felt a comment and a tone and not being liked by coworkers worthy of making something out of it, was an example of needing to suck it up and try and get past it and see how it turned out. I'm not talking about the injury, that's physical and factual and not subjective.

Feelings are subjective and everyone has them. Nobody can say that you weren't and shouldn't have been offended but because feelings are subjective, we as a society have to have objective standards for reacting based on feelings. Acceptable reactions are based on the incident and not so much on the feelings. Your feelings could have been really hurt by the school comment or by the tone of voice, but your reaction should have been based on the issue and not your feelings. It's acceptable to speak up about it, but it's also a given that a comment which could most likely be harmless and a tone of voice isn't something to make a big deal out of unless it continues for a longer time. In this case it was less than two weeks and from the impression I got nobody had a chance to get to know one another and change their impressions.

I'm not the only one who can see this and you'll probably find that at least 75% of people will feel and act like this, and because it's common sense you'll find that most people expect others to act like this too. Overreacting isn't seen as mature and won't get you very far. I keep trying to tell you this not because of some crazy idea of bullying or being mean. If I wanted to bully or be mean you would be in tears by now, trust me. That isn't my goal at all. I keep trying to tell you in hope you can maybe start to see this side of the matter. This is something you'll need to work on with a therapist probably because it's not something you can just make yourself do, but it's something you need to do and to realize about yourself and it's now a flaw but it's a reaction and it's an instance like I outlined above. Something that you may take more offense to than is warranted and that you need to react to based on what is said and not what you felt was meant or felt by it in general.

I can't explain it any better. Some people overreact. It's a fact and there's nothing wrong with it,they just need to learn how to control their actions and learn how to back up and look at issues and incidents and see perspective so they can possibly not be as offended. Not being offended is a good thing. It's not letting somebody else get over on you, it's learning what does and doesn't warrant certain action.

I don't expect a reasoned and rational response from you right now. I fully expect you to fly off the handle and get all upset by this. However my hope is that you'll remember what I said after you calm down and give it some thought and maybe consider it again and talk to somebody about it. Maybe like my son you'll learn to control how you react and what to let go and move past. He's doing well and he's happy and he's a lot calmer most of the time. I think you will be too if you just give it a chance and try to learn to see the big picture and different perspectives. I can't control how you take what I've said to you, I can only tell you what I mean. You're physically and legally a grown man and can choose to take it however you choose to, but I hope you take it with a little maturity and see that I'm not being mean or a bully or trying to hurt you. If you can't learn this now, you'll kick yourself when you're older because you will have wasted so much time being pissed off and failing at things that require interaction.

Seriously, good luck.

OliveOilMom, I hear you loud and clear. I'm only going to reply to you this one last time, because you seem to not be hearing me. I've faced and experienced things I "don't like" and responded rationally, civilly, and even in a friendly manner for years upon years. Thanks for the advice, but you're preaching to the choir here. Pay more close attention to people's responses and you'll understand that your point can be - and usually is - made within one post.