I have run into a bit of a problem with my employer, I'm am currently in wheelchair, but despite this I don't have much flexibility in my income because I have no safety net. My job doesn't pay very well however, it does pay just a tad above the SGA (Substantial Gainful Activity) line, which is what you have to earn BELOW of to receive benefits. Sadly I don't get those because I make just a bit to much but not enough to still not be working poor, go figure. Now after a month of working at my current job in inventory, my management have changed the rules on me creating more headaches.
I started last month and everything was fine until this Wednesday, when my General Manager stopped by. He told me that I can no longer continue working unless I buy steel-toed boots. I work inventory for my company and I move all around multiple parts of the building but I am NOT a warehouse worker. However, I do have to go through part of the warehouse in order to get to where everyone clocks in at or does computer training as that room is in the back of the warehouse, but on a path away from the stock shelves. However, he still insisted that because I enter the warehouse at all it will now be a requirement to have Steel-toed boots and gives me until Monday when I come in my next shift to have them or he will fire me.
Again, I want to point out that I had been working fine with no complaints for around a month at this job and no one complained about anything. The fact they want me to throw out money out of the blue for these Steel-toed shoes, especially when I'm in a wheelchair where such boots are practically useless given I'm nowhere near the stock-area, is completely unfair especially with the ultimatum. I don't get paid enough by them for sudden expenses and I've already paid my necessities (rent, food, etc) given it was recently the end of the month, so until my next check I got nothing and that's not until AFTER the deadline I was given.
I'm not in an area with a lot of stores, a consequence of trying to find the cheapest place I can rent that's handicap accessible, and Target is the only store that sells these steel-toed boots at a cheap price and even there they cost $66 as there's nothing else around. Probably doesn't help it's a small store without as many options as a normal sized Target store. Given that I can't drive this is the lowest price I can reach.
Now I may lose my job because I can't randomly buy steel toed boots which again, wasn't an issue for a month until now. and being in a wheelchair they seem rather pointless but sadly my General Manager told me that I have to have them by Monday.
What the heck do they expect you to do? He knows how tight many of the staff budgets are, they denied people pay increases recently so I can only chalk it up to the management being completely disconnected. Sadly, in my area there's not many jobs and being disabled in my case makes things even harder, so I can't afford to leave this for another job, but I can't afford the boots they want either at $66. I'm completely stumped on what to do.
It's clear that when this decision was made management was not considering the employees at all.