The Unexpected Waiter
A fictional short-short story
My most recent performance evaluation said I was “a rising star.” But in a DEI training, fed up, I murmured, “Every redistribution from Haves is anti-merit.” I was reported to HR and was fired as “perpetrating a position inimical to SiliTech’s core values of diversity, equity, and inclusion.”
What was I to do? Being fired for cause, let alone because I questioned DEI, meant I probably couldn’t land a good job in the Valley or even if I moved to Silicon Alley in New York City or Silicon Hills in Austin. My prospects at a university would be even worse.
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As an interim, I decided to get a job as a waiter at a nearby restaurant that’s popular with Silitech employees. They’d be shocked to see me as a waiter, which I assumed would trigger some honest discussion about the justice of my having been fired.
But at most, they said things like, “Hi Joe. Sorry you’re gone. I’ll have the veggie burger with sweet potato fries and a low-fat iced matcha latte.”
After a few days of such responses, I’m thinking about moving back to Singapore.
I read this aloud on YouTube.
Marty Nemko is a career and personal coach, and author of 34 books including Work Stories. You can reach Marty at mnemko@comcast.net
