Despite being aware of her diabetes, a former restaurant hostess with diabetes recently described how her manager nearly called the cops on her after spotting syringes in her luggage. He continued to accuse her of drug use after she stated that the medical gadgets were for her illness, rejecting her as a liar because he only knew other diabetics who used pumps to provide their life-sustaining meds.
Diabetic Worker Quits After Boss Threatens To Call Police Over Her Insulin Syringe
In the video, Abby Gebo portrays her former boss passing by her backpack and noticing the medical equipment, then approaching her and accusing her of using illegal narcotics, but not before warning another hostess that the cops might be called.
“Hey, hostess number one, I might need you to call the cops,” he said. “Give me a couple of minutes, though.”
“You know, Abby, I expected better from you,” he then lectured Gebo after she said it was her bag. “Are you just holding these for someone, because you don’t look like you would have these?”
Putting aside what this manager might think of as a typical illicit drug user, Gebo is exactly the type of person who would have those, as she has type 1 diabetes, which necessitates the usage of injected insulin regularly. Gebo reminded her supervisor about her sickness after he demanded to know why she was carrying the syringes.
“I have diabetes, but you know that,” she told him. “I don’t know why you’re asking me about it.”
“My niece is a diabetic, and she does not have syringes,” said the manager. “I know that they use pumps. So, wrong, try again.”
After such a condescending, disrespectful, and dismissive attitude, it's no surprise Gebo departed on the same day. Interrogating employees about their medical gadgets is illegal under the Americans with Disabilities Act, thus said the manager should consider himself fortunate.
“Okay um, I can’t wait to sue you, but some people can’t afford pumps and have to use like vials and syringes,” said Gebo.
The manager then wanted to see the vials, which is also against the ADA, and even when she complied, which she was under no obligation to do, he continued to treat her as if she were a criminal.
“You’re lucky, but I’m watching you,” he said.
“And that was the day I quit,” Gebo concluded.
Many commenters backed Gebo's choice to resign following this encounter, claiming that the manager was over the line and might be sued for both breaching the ADA and improperly inspecting her suitcase. Other diabetics and their loved ones added their own stories of people freaking out when they see a syringe, assuming that anyone using this medical gadget is injecting heroin or something.
“I’ve had the cops called on me for taking insulin in public…bc I’m skinny and diabetics aren’t skinny,” said one commenter.
“As someone whose mom is a type one diabetic this happens quite often to us,” wrote another. “Cause my mom uses syringes we’ve had many waitresses [a]lmost call the cops til my mom and me explain that my mom is a type one diabetic and it’s insulin and she needs it to survive.”
@thegebos Diabetic story time #diabetes #t1d #waitress #storytime #insulin #insulinpimp #job #typeonediabetes #fyp ♬ original sound - Abby Gebo