Wendy’s FIRES loyal staffer of 20 years who has Down syndrome

A North Carolina man with Down syndrome was fired from Wendy’s after 20 years because his manager said he was “incapable of performing the duties of a normal job.”

Dennis Peek, 51, has been a loyal staffer at the fast food chain in Gaston County for 20 years and was planning to retire soon.

But his family alleges that the store manager told them that Peek was fired because they needed someone who could do more work in the store than he couldn’t.

Peek’s sister, Cona Turner, heartbroken by the news, now pleads for her brother and wants answers to the question of why he was fired without notice.

“I’m here because I have to be his voice for the way he was treated,” said Cona Turner, Peek’s sister. “He doesn’t understand and we can’t tell him he’s been fired. We didn’t tell him and we won’t tell him.’

Turner shared her frustrations in a Facebook post that went viral, and Peek was later reinstated at the restaurant.

But in an update on Friday, Turner said her brother will not be returning to Wendy’s. Instead, he’ll have the retirement party he’s always wanted. And Wendy’s will foot the bill.

Turner told WBTV that her brother loved Wendy’s and always wanted to work there because of the food.

‘Lots of food. It’s good stuff. I love Baconator,’ said Peek. “I love my job at Wendy’s.”

And for twenty years, he looked forward to his services and dealings with his colleagues and customers, his sister said.

“He’s always excited to go to work,” she said. “He loves to see people come in and talk to him. He likes to interact with people.’

And he always looked forward to retiring where he had been for so long — and throwing a retirement party.

So when her brother was fired, it was devastating.

Turner said a Wendy’s manager fired her brother just before he was due to be dropped off by a janitor.

Turner said the manager said the reason for the dismissal was that Peek couldn’t do the job.

“He doesn’t understand if anyone is standing up to him,” his sister said. “He doesn’t understand that he isn’t being treated fairly. He doesn’t understand. Not him. . . it just breaks my heart.’

Peek’s sister, Cona Turner, who was heartbroken by the news, now pleads for her brother and wants answers to why he was fired without notice

On Thursday, Peek’s sister said she got a call from the Carolina restaurant group that owns and operates the Wendy’s and says he could be back on schedule next week.

Turner turned to Facebook and posted about her brother’s experience.

“All the comments and support for my brother… it just melted my heart,” she said.

The message went viral and the company became involved.

On Thursday, she got a call from the Carolina restaurant group that owns and operates the Wendy’s and says it could be back on schedule next week.

But in an update posted on Friday, Turner announced that her brother would not be returning to Wendy’s and that he would be getting the retirement party he’s always wanted. And Wendy’s has offered to help with expenses.

Peek, 51, has been a loyal staffer at the Gaston County fast food chain for 20 years and plans to retire soon. But he was reportedly fired for not being able to do the job

WBTV reached out and got a statement about the situation from the Carolina Restaurant Group franchise organization that reads:

“We are committed to creating a welcoming and inclusive environment for our employees and our customers. This was an unfortunate mistake and an error in protocol; we are in contact with the employee’s family and we look forward to welcoming him back to the restaurant.

The Carolina Restaurant Group stated:

We are unable to comment further on human resources, but we are taking appropriate action. This was an unfortunate error that we are working to resolve with the team member, his job coach and family. We also use this as an opportunity to retrain all our teams in our protocols.”