Comparison between nonhandicapped and mentally retarded workers: why they lose their jobs

Reasons why 133 competitively employed nonhandicapped and 8 mentally retarded food service workers lost their jobs were examined. Reasons for termination were analyzed in terms of the social and production categories provided by Greenspan's (1981) social competence model. The majority of mentally retarded workers lost their jobs for productivity reasons, with some associated secondary social problems. The nonhandicapped workers lost their jobs for both social and production problems. When more than one reason was provided for termination, the impact of social problems increased. Results are discussed in terms of previous studies and in relation to their possible impact upon employment training and placement issues with mentally retarded workers.