My sons first job interview

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So today my son had his first job interview and I'm a little perplexed by the experience. I'm by no means a "helicopter parent" but I'm happy I went in with him anyways. My son is 17 and this was a fast-food job, I won't mention the company because I don't think it was the company as much as it was that location.

My son is deaf and he has been doing his job search online as most companies, fast food anyways, mostly do things online. I didn't help him pick a place or even fill out his application for him, that was all on him. When it came time to find out if they were going to interview him, he wanted me to call them but I refused and had him handle it all. Now the only part he didn't do on his first phone call was request an ASL interpreter, I did have to remind him to do so. He called back let them know one would be needed and they said they would have someone there.

The day of the interview, today, I went in with him just to let them know that he was there for the interview. We sat and waited for about 30 minutes and I just knew they didn't have someone to interpret for him. A kid comes out with a piece of notebook paper and says they can start the interview. So I got to be his interpreter, and I wasn't happy about it. They had planned to have him write down his answers and then they would review them later to decide on if he would be hired. I'm not sure this was a fair interview and I'm trying to keep the Dad in check and balance it against him being kid who will be graduating from HS next year and needs to do be able to do things on his own.

So now comes the questions.
1) Do I contact the company and request another interview for him and make sure they have an ASL interpreter the next time?
2) Do I just let things be and make sure he requests one for the next time?
3) Do I do a little of both?
4) Would this company have provided an interpreter for a person who doesn't speak good English?

Federal laws from what I can glean appears to show that employers are under no obligation to hire the deaf, which I have no problem with, but it does say if they are going to interview that they have to provide an interpreter so that the candidate has a fair shot at the job. So what should or shouldn't I do?

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@Baldimo,

The answer to #4 is almost certainly "no". I can tell you from experience that non-native speakers have difficulty getting jobs. Heck, my sons speak English perfectly and still the color of their skin added difficulty. I know lots of immigrants, some of whom have trouble speaking English. I have never heard of anyone being given a translator for a job interview.

Can you let your son take the reins?

It seems to me there are two issues here.

One is navigating the relationship with an almost adult son. I have no experience with the challenges he faces (we have had our challenges), but I have gone through this with two now adult sons. My philosophy was always to give help where it was asked for, but to stand back otherwise. I would give suggestions, but I didn't step in if they didn't accept my advice. This worked out well for us.

The other issue is especially challenging, I have been on both sides of the hiring process. The process is horrible, companies don't know what they are doing and they are trying just to get through themselves. This is especially true for people with physical challenges. I don't expect that you will have any luck contacting the company. I don't really know what to suggest other than to help your son communicate his needs from the start.

Good luck to your son.

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@Baldimo,

I don't feel that there is anything wrong with letting kids take a stab at things on their own. Failure and losing are both important things to experience. You can learn a whole lot through both. If my four year old is trying to do something and is having trouble I let him sort it out. If he just isn't getting it or is getting frustrated I step in, calm the frustration, and guide him just enough so that he gets it but is still challenged.

As a parent, I don't WANT to see my kids fail, get hurt, get in trouble, etc. But I realize their failures now will teach them for a time when failures can be much more catastrophic.

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I wonder if there is an agency that specializes in placing persons who have special needs in the workplace. They would know all the answers for the questions you ask.

Are you in the US?

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@tibbleinparadise,

Quote:

@Baldimo,
I don't feel that there is anything wrong with letting kids take a stand at things on their own. Failure and losing are both important things to experience. You can learn a whole lot through both. If my four year old is trying to do something and is having trouble I let him sort it out. If he just isn't getting it or is getting frustrated I step in, calm the frustration, and guide him just enough so that he gets it but is still challenged.

As a parent, I don't WANT to see my kids fail, get hurt, get in trouble, etc. But I realize their failures now will teach them for a time when failures can be much more catastrophic.

I'm ok with him failing on his own but without an interpreter I don't think he was able to fully communicate with the interviewer. I'm ok with ASL and I communicate with my son just fine, but when it comes to larger world aspects, I don't know the proper signs or enough of the nuance of the signs to be a proper communicator for him. Trust me when I say, that if my son had a voice to speak, this wouldn't be an issue. He's a normal kid, he's just deaf. No social or learning disabilities of any sort, his ears just don't work. Me trying to "speak" for him in a formal capacity isn't doing the kid justice, I'm not that proficient in ASL. Trying to pass myself off as a "professional" ASL user would be grounds for a lawsuit, and I've been using ASL with my son for 16 years.

I'm hoping Ebeth catches this post, I think she would have a better understanding of what I'm talking about.

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Maybe this helps? You've probably read it though.

https://www.eeoc.gov/facts/jobapplicant.html

Quote:

Reasonable Accommodation for the Application Process

1. I have a disability and will need an accommodation for the job interview. Does the ADA require an employer to provide me with one?

Yes. Employers are required to provide "reasonable accommodation" -- appropriate changes and adjustments -- to enable you to be considered for a job opening. Reasonable accommodation may also be required to enable you to perform a job, gain access to the workplace, and enjoy the "benefits and privileges" of employment available to employees without disabilities. An employer cannot refuse to consider you because you require a reasonable accommodation to compete for or perform a job.

2. Can an employer refuse to provide me with an accommodation because it is too difficult or too expensive?

An employer does not have to provide a specific accommodation if it would cause an "undue hardship" that is, if it would require significant difficulty or expense. However, an employer cannot refuse to provide an accommodation solely because it entails some costs, either financial or administrative.

If the requested accommodation causes an undue hardship, the employer still would be required to provide another accommodation that does not.

Quote:

Filing a Charge of Discrimination

20. What can I do if I believe an employer has violated the ADA?

If you think an employer has denied you a job or an equal opportunity to apply for a job based on your disability, refused your request for reasonable accommodation, or has asked you illegal medical inquiries or required you to take an illegal medical examination, you should contact the EEOC. A charge (complaint) of discrimination generally must be filed within 180 days of the alleged discrimination. You may have up to 300 days to file a charge if a state or local law provides relief for discrimination on the basis of disability. However, to protect your rights, it is best to contact the EEOC promptly if you suspect discrimination has occurred.

You may file a charge of discrimination by contacting any EEOC field office, located in cities throughout the United States. If you have been discriminated against, you are entitled to a remedy that will place you in the position you would have been in if the discrimination had never occurred. This means you may be entitled to hiring, back pay, or reasonable accommodation. You may also be entitled to attorney's fees.

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@maxdancona,

Quote:

The answer to #4 is almost certainly "no". I can tell you from experience that non-native speakers have difficulty getting jobs. Heck, my sons speak English perfectly and still the color of their skin added difficulty. I know lots of immigrants, some of whom have trouble speaking English. I have never heard of anyone being given a translator for a job interview.

I hear what you are saying, but the fast food industry here in CO would say differently. The # of people I have encountered at your average FF joint who can't even take a basic order in English says they do have some sort of English/Spanish assistance in the hiring process. Could be that the person doing the interview speaks Spanish and conducts the interview in that language. Once again that is here in CO, I can't speak for the area where you live.

Quote:

Can you let your son take the reins?

They are his to take, it's whether he can be a proper advocate for his rights when it comes to being deaf. He's only 17 and I'm not fully sure he knows what all the laws are pertaining to his disability, it's questionable whether this location knew their responsibilities to someone with a hearing disability that they chose to interview. If he gets the job I'm going to have to ensure in him that he proves himself in the off chance he was hired to be a statistic. I have faith in him it's the outside world he has to impress.

Quote:

One is navigating the relationship with an almost adult son. I have no experience with the challenges he faces (we have had our challenges), but I have gone through this with two now adult sons. My philosophy was always to give help where it was asked for, but to stand back otherwise. I would give suggestions, but I didn't step in if they didn't accept my advice. This worked out well for us.

I understand the man-to-be relationship dynamic with my son, I have a son who is going to be 20 and didn't have any of these fears. I'll admit it was different fears because he was your average teenager, so work ethic and other such things were in the fears with him. My fear with the youngest is not being screwed because he is deaf. He doesn't have any social or learning disabilities, his ears don't work. My sons like yours are minorities, my ex-wife is bi-racial herself so my kids are only "half" as much. While they don't look like an average black kid, they do have traits of their African heritage. You would think they were Puerto Rican or some other light skin Latino.

Quote:

The other issue is especially challenging, I have been on both sides of the hiring process. The process is horrible, companies don't know what they are doing and they are trying just to get through themselves. This is especially true for people with physical challenges. I don't expect that you will have any luck contacting the company. I don't really know what to suggest other than to help your son communicate his needs from the start.

As I said, he's dealing with a world wide company in the fast food industry. They have a track record of dealing with all levels of disabled people, this isn't a mom and pop 5 person company. I did some more reading and according to the law, they should have provided an interpreter, his language issue isn't the same as a different language, it is limited to a disability.
https://www.ada.gov/effective-comm.htm

I'm not trying to force someone to hire him, I talked him out of applying at Gamestop because of his inability to hear and speak. He agreed that a talking sales position probably isn't in his current future. He actually wants to be a CSI and is planning on checking out RIT this fall with his mother. They have a good CSI program as well as facilities that are deaf friendly.

Quote:

Good luck to your son.

I will pass that along. He's been peeking over my shoulder as I type away on my laptop. He know's I'm posting about him...

1 Reply

@Baldimo,

Quote:

I'm hoping Ebeth catches this post, I think she would have a better understanding of what I'm talking about.

I think I might be wrong about Ebeth, I don't think she is deaf. I know we have a deaf poster here, we have talked about my son before. If someone know's who I'm talking about could they ping/tag her?

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@McGentrix,

Yes, I have read this after making this post. I'm not one to file complaints against people. I'd be more interested in bring this to their attention and asking if he could do another interview with an interpreter. I can sign with him, but I'm not the right person to be his interpreter for a job, I'm not that good of a signer.

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@Baldimo,

Baldimo wrote:

I think I might be wrong about Ebeth, I don't think she is deaf. I know we have a deaf poster here, we have talked about my son before. If someone know's who I'm talking about could they ping/tag her?

That would be Sozobe, but she is no longer a regular.

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@Baldimo,

Are you and you son connected into the deaf community? I am sure that there are other people who are going through this, and I would imagine that there is emotional support as well as strength in numbers.

I am not sure if you really wanted to compare your son to the hardships faced by recent immigrants (although maybe there is some similarity). Yes, recent immigrants end up with fast food jobs (which are not very good jobs for raising a family). They get stuck in crappy jobs that no one wants to be in these types of jobs for very long.

For people in the immigrant community facing these types of hardships, being connected to the community means everything. There is emotional support, tips on how to overcome prejudice, information on what companies are hiring and what people are sympathetic, and even legal support for companies that violate their rights.

That's the best advice I have is to get connected to other people who are facing similar issues. There is nothing stronger than community.

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@Baldimo,

Hi there!

You absolutely should not have been dragooned into being his interpreter.

They absolutely should have provided an ASL interpreter.

I'll answer your numbered questions first.

1) I really think you should leave this to him. If the interview already happened, with you as the interpreter, probably not the best idea to request another
2) Again leave that to him.
3) All him!
4) Dunno, but not really pertinent. Deafness is its own issue.

Okay so now on to more general comments.

Disclosure is a really big issue in terms of jobs and deaf folks. Especially now that so much is done online, there are more opportunities for deaf people to be judged on their actual skills, experience etc. rather than a potential employer's foregone conclusions about what deaf people are (or are not) capable of.

Meanwhile, the pre-hiring period is one where employers can make all kinds of subjective decisions about who to hire, and it can be super difficult to pinpoint that they're making a decision because someone is deaf.

So there are various ways that can be handled. One is to bring your own interpreter, even though the potential employer is in fact supposed to provide one. This is back to subjectivity and making the best impression. (The interpreter should NOT be a family member. That's another issue.)

Another is to go ahead and request an interpreter, as you did. This is entirely appropriate. It's a little risky, especially depending on what kind of a job it is. A fast food place isn't going to provide an interpreter for every minute he's on the job, so they're looking for how he is going to do the work. Does he read lips? Does writing work well? Does he have some other sort of accommodation (speech-to-text technology, say -- not that anything is currently up to this) that he plans to use?

How does he in fact plan to perform the essential functions of this job? Will he be taking orders? How, if so? (Perhaps there is a menu that people can point to -- there are many simple and cheap accommodations.) If he's going to be doing cleaning sorts of things, maybe he only needs to have an ASL interpreter for occasional staff meetings. Etc.

Have him research what benefits there are to the employer for hiring someone with a disability (there are tax credits, for example). Encourage him to talk about that during his interview.

http://www.askearn.org/wp-content/uploads/docs/askearn_taxincentives_factsheet.pdf

He can also think about/ research possible accommodations; perhaps there are simple and cheap accommodations that they hadn't already thought of.

Generally my advice is -- let him take it from here. This specific job may not work out but it'll be a learning experience either way. Good luck to him!

1 Reply

@Baldimo,

Ha that's me. Interesting, nobody got my attention or anything but I happened to check in at A2K for the first time in a looooonnng time and I saw this. Not only am I deaf but I used to do job training and placement, so this was totally my thing.

Meanwhile, I read further here and see that while you were the interpreter, you feel that you didn't do a very good job of conveying what your son had to say. That could maybe be the occasion for a respectful follow-up from your son. An email in his own words, thanking them again for the opportunity and expanding a bit on his answers during the interview (with maybe a short aside about the fact that his dad, while awesome in general and willing to step in as needed, is not nearly at professional ASL interpreter level).

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@sozobe,

Hi there. Long time no see...

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@Baldimo,

Many years ago I got my first job at the age of 16 or 17. It just so happen was a fast food burger restaurant. I seem to remember my mom telling me that she spoke to the manager. The manager told my mom to tell me to come in for an interview. After the interview I was hired. I then was schedule to attend one day of training. I think I did that job for a couple of years.

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