A BLIND jobseeker was ordered to turn inside-out a homemade T-shirt emblazoned with a plea for work at a job session.
Andrew Slater wore the T-shirt, which said "I need a job, yes me", to a meeting at Remploy in Friar Gate, Derby.
However, staff at the employment agency, which deals specifically with disabled jobseekers, said that the shirt was inappropriate and told him to change.
The 20-year-old, of Teesdale Road, Long Eaton, who is registered fully blind and suffers from a speech impediment, said that he was asked to change the shirt because there were managers from the agency's head-office and an employer on site. He said: "The lady who I usually see there came to the door and said: 'Andrew, can I please have a word?'
"She said: 'Good idea with the T-shirt but please can you turn it inside-out?'
"Towards the end of the session, one of the ladies on the front desk said: 'Excuse me, but your T-shirt is inside out.' She asked if it was something offensive. My adviser said: 'No but he knows the reason for it'."
Andrew has been job hunting since September 2012 and he started wearing the T-shirt to attract potential employers while out and about.
His dad, Glenn, 40, said that he was shocked when he got a text from Andrew telling him what happened.
He said: "If I had been the employer who was around and saw that T-shirt, I would have thought: 'That is someone who is using their initiative.'
"How can an organisation that is set up to promote employment for people with disabilities start pushing him around?
"I am just surprised that this is how they act."
Glenn went back to the company to speak to the manager, who repeated what she had said to Andrew.
Glenn said: "The reason they gave about the T-shirt doesn't seem very good at all."
Since the incident, Andrew and Glenn have been invited back to the office for a face-to-face talk with Remploy staff.
Remploy spokesman Chris Randall said the staff did not mean to cause any distress but the agency stood by its policy. He said: "We are very sorry if Andrew was distressed or embarrassed by being asked to turn his T-shirt inside-out.
"The request was made with the best intentions. We ask all candidates to dress smartly as they may be asked to attend an interview at very short notice. We remain committed to doing everything we can to help Andrew with his job searching."