Do I have legal rights about workplace causing my great frustration?

[draxdomax]

February, I joined a company that everyone knows. I am not going to mention the name but the chances are that 40% of you have their product in your wallet...
My role there is: Senior Software Developer

It was really promising at first, they gave me a technical test that I aced and the package they offered was very good.
Plus, they are such a big name that I thought they must be a decent company.

I will not list all the crazy things that have happened but maybe I'll mention a few:

• They asked me to sign a contract but their email didn't include a contract... All I had was the offer letter which has a starting date... I tried ALL the possible means of reaching them and only 2 weeks before my starting date, I got the contract... I spent 2 months not knowing if I should be looking for a job - I already accepted their offer and didn't want to go against my word
• When I started working with them, they gave me a broken computer and I couldn't do anything at all for 3 weeks. The guy who was supposed to help me knew much less about computers than I do and he made me try all sorts of crazy things which obviously were just a waste of my time and frustration
• At some point, I got a contract and a working computer - great :) Now, I started digging into the software solution and learning what's what... Well, I had questions about what's going on and, anyway, I don't think it's reasonable to ask me to study the whole project - it's a VERY big project! All the companies I worked for before have given me a little tour and built up my confidence... Here, NO ONE ANSWERS ANY QUESTIONS!
• They just gave me work items that I have no chance to complete because I have not been trained in very specific and proprietary areas that I have no chance to know unless someone introduces me (these are not things you can google)

There were many other infarctions against basic professional behaviour, like calling me in to the London office but nobody expected me there so I sat for 2 hours in the lobby and the security kicked me out... Of the office of the company that I am working for!

Anyway, I am now diagnosed with depression. My clinical psychologist has no doubt that the frustration and insult I suffered at work is the cause.

I still want things to work out. I genuinely joined that company as a person who is interested in the success of all of us there!

But, also, I just had a chat with my manager who said things aren't going well and I have two months to turn things around or they'll let me go.
I have had ZERO success with getting people to help me help them, they are definitely gatekeeping and trying to make themselves scarce.

1. I just wonder: If they choose to let me go (I am on probation, contractually), can I resist this legally by proving that there was no reasonable expectation that I could be successful, given the utter lack of professionalism and support from them?

In case you are worried about them: Due to the inflation problem, they are having their best year ever and that's probably why no one has any motivation to run this company properly.

I doubt it.

How does it being a "hot topic" (not that I have noticed it is) justify suggesting that somebody claim to be disabled, when they are clearly not, to try to prevent themselves from being managed out on failed performance grounds? I don't think you realise how offensive that is to people who really do have disabilities. We constantly have to justify our existence in the workplace, we frequently have to justify why we get reasonable adjustments so that we can do the job as well as others with no disabilities. At interviews there is often an assumption that we will be unable to do the work, require expensive adjustments and simply be a headache to employ.

Having a disability does not mean that we cannot do the job as well as anyone else, and nor should it. Equality is about being equal, not being treated better and "let off" the standards of work that apply to everyone else.

Your comment intrinsically says that someone whose performance is below standard should be allowed to get away with it if they claim to be disabled. That is offensive. If you can do the job, you shouldn't need "protection". For some people, adjustments may mean that there are things it is recognised that they genuinely cannot do because of their disability. "Not being able to do the job" isn't one of them!

I don't know wether the OP is simply the wrong fit for this employer, or the employer is unreasonable in their expectations. So I won't pass judgement on that. Clealry the OP isn't happy and neither is the employer, so getting out is their best strategy. But trying to hang on by lying about a disability is inappropriate, and suggesting that they do is a disserevice to all people with disabilities. Many cannot work or their disability means they have restrictions in what they can do, but many of us work and perform as well as anyone else. If you had a disability, I think you would understand how insulting your comment is to us.