'I told him you didn't fit in, whatever that meant'

Dorney Park and Wildwater Kingdom. Photo / TripAdvisor

An amusement park has offered to rehire a special needs employee after his co-worker took to social media to lambaste the company for firing him.

However, Christopher Emery's mother Claudia told The Allentown Morning Call she doesn't want her 29-year-old son to return to Dorney Park and Wildwater Kingdom in Pennsylvania, US, because of how he was treated.

"Why humiliate him twice?" she said. "It wouldn't have changed. It would have been the same thing. Chris is Chris. The whole interview was not set up for special-needs people, that's what it boils down to."

Christopher had cleaned bathrooms at the park for 12 seasons, and his mother said he looked forward to the job. But this week she was told he didn't do well in an interview and wasn't being rehired.

Mrs Emery said it was heartbreaking trying to explain to her happy son that the interview wasn't a success.

"I told him you didn't fit in, whatever that meant," she said. "How do you explain that? That's what started the whole Facebook frenzy. As a mum, how do you explain that to a special-needs person who has worked a job 12 years? That was my biggest concern."

Fellow Dorney park worker Matt Redline wrote an angry Facebook post that went viral about "his buddy Chris" losing his job. It has been liked more than 50,000 times so far, and shared more than 30,000 times.

After seeing how much attention it had attracted, Matt then posted an update.

Speaking of the outpouring of support, Mrs Emery said: "It's been overwhelming. I told Chris this morning how many people love him."

She also proudly updated her Facebook profile photo to a shot of her dapper-looking son.

As for Christopher? Well, he's also been moved by the support he's receiving - even from strangers.

"People were being nice to me this morning. People I don't even know," he said. "It makes me feel happy. It makes me feel happy and proud."

Mike Fehnel, the park's general manager, says the company respects and values all of their workers, and they want Christopher back.

-News.com.au, AP