đŸ”— Share this article The supermarket chain makes employment U-turn concerning initially declined neurodivergent employee Tom Boyd volunteered at his local Waitrose for four years on a unpaid basis before being first refused for compensated employment Waitrose has changed its determination not to grant paid work to an neurodivergent person after initially saying he had to discontinue volunteering at the branch where he had worked unpaid for several years. Earlier this year, the young man's parent inquired whether her 28-year-old son the individual could be given a position at the grocery store in Cheadle Hulme, but her request was finally turned down by Waitrose head office. This week, competing supermarket Asda announced it sought to give Tom employment hours at its local branch. Reacting to the supermarket's reversal, the parent stated: "We are going to evaluate the situation and determine whether it is in what's best for our son to return... and are having additional conversations with the company." 'We are investigating' A official for the retailer said: "We'd like to see Tom resume, in a paying position, and are requesting assistance from his family and the non-profit to facilitate this." "We expect to have him return with us shortly." "We care deeply about assisting individuals into the employment who might usually not be provided employment." "Therefore, we enthusiastically received Tom and his support worker into our local store to gain experience and build his confidence." "We have policies in place to enable unpaid work, and are investigating what's happened in this case." The parent wants to discern what is the optimal opportunity for her family member Tom's mother explained she had been "profoundly affected" by how people had answered to her sharing her son's experiences. Tom, who has limited communication skills, was commended for his dedication by supervisors. "He gave more than six hundred hours of his time purely because he wanted to belong, make a difference, and have an impact," commented his mother. The parent praised and thanked employees at Waitrose's Cheadle Hulme store for helping him, adding: "They welcomed him and were exceptionally supportive." "I think he was just flying under the radar - operations were proceeding normally until it reached corporate level." The family have been supported by local official the mayor. He posted on online platforms that Tom had received "completely unacceptable" handling and vowed to "assist him to identify different opportunities that succeeds". The official declared the regional organization "strongly urges all employers - including Waitrose - to register to our newly established diversity program". Speaking with Tom's mother, who announced of the employment opportunity on BBC Radio Manchester, the elected official stated: "Good on you for raising awareness because we require a significant public information effort here." She accepted his invitation to serve as a representative for the program.