In the fall of 2022, a colleague of mine was working with a young man with Autism in Prince Edward Island; her job was to help him find gainful employment. “Derek” (not his real name) was hired as a dishwasher on a wage subsidy and a 12-week trial opportunity; however, after the first 2 weeks, it became clear that the dish pit was not only a lonely station to work in but was too busy and not engaging him in any way. Soon, Derek got slower at work, took more frequent breaks, and began to wander through the kitchen, chatting with other staff to make the time pass faster.

The kitchen manager noticed this behaviour and eventually reported it to me. Since I had committed to trying Derek out for the duration of the wage subsidy, my kitchen manager informed me that she intended to let him go from the position in the coming two weeks.

Once I heard about this situation, I asked why Derek was put into the dish pit in the first place. By any account, it is by far the most demanding and chaotic position in the kitchen. Perhaps a more structured spot for him would be doing kitchen prep, where there are others to talk to and an opportunity to learn new skills at a more controlled pace.

As it turned out, the kitchen manager agreed to try Derek in the prep position for his remaining time and with some support and guidance he is still working and thriving in this position. Not only thriving, but I can also report that my food costs have dropped by 20% in the past two months with Derek working prep. You see, when Derek was asked to put six slices of cheese on an item, you got six slices. Not five. Not 8, Six. When Derek was asked to measure 4 ounces, that is exactly what they got. Over positioning and waste and food cost killers, Derek excelled at measuring and counting precisely what he was told. He was happy in his new ‘responsible role’ and was made assistant manager of food prep. So much so that Derek never missed a day of work and has lifted the spirit in the kitchen.

Sometimes it just takes a conversation about the individual and meeting them where they are at with an onboarding plan and training rather than trying to make a person fit into a position.