A Swanscombe woman says she was rejected from a job at Aldi because of her disability, leaving her "devastated".

In May, Debbie Brown - who worked the check-outs for Asda in Bexleyheath for 14 years - applied for a store assistant position at Aldi, due to open at the Orchards Shopping Centre in Dartford this month.

The 55-year-old was offered a telephone interview last Tuesday (June 2).

Mrs Brown, of Bushfield Walk, told News Shopper: "I filled out the application form online and part of the form is 'do you have a disability?'

"I filled out 'yes' - I have severe Osteoarthritis in my knees and I walk with a stick.

"I successfully got through to a telephone interview so I was really pleased.

"When I had the interview the first questions the man asked were not about me, they were the hours I could work, what days of the week I could work."

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Mother-of-four Mrs Brown, who has four grandchildren, was then told her job could involve working the tills or stacking shelves.

She said: "I told him I couldn't stack shelves because of my disability.

"He said: 'But you ticked ‘no disability'.

"I said: 'I meant to tick 'yes', and I filled out a box below explaining my disability'. 

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"He apologised and said he had the wrong application form in front of him.

"He then said: 'I have now got yours and I can see you have ticked disability. I am going to get off the phone and discuss this with my admin team'.

"He basically cut me dead the moment he knew I had a disability."

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Within 24 hours Mrs Brown received an e-mail saying she had been unsuccessful in her interview.

She said: "It seems going back to the telephone interview, the minute he found out he discriminated against me because I have a disability.

"If he had gone through the whole process, the whole interview, and I hadn't got the job I would have said ‘fair enough’, but he just ended it.

"I feel devastated that I was judged, that they didn't give me the chance to talk about me and my work experience.

"I'm mortified they stopped it at the point they did, and never even had the decency to call me back."

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'This application is still live'

In a bizarre turn of events, Aldi, after News Shopper approached them for a comment, claimed Mrs Brown’s job application was still live, despite the fact she had received a rejection e-mail.

A spokeswoman said: "Aldi welcomes applications from people with disabilities. 

"We can confirm this application is still live and no decision has been made as a full telephone assessment has yet to take place. 

"Following our initial conversation with the candidate, where we were given further information about her requirements, we have explored what reasonable adjustments could be made to the role and we have invited the applicant to complete the next stage of the interview process."

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Since News Shopper spoke to Aldi, Mrs Brown has been offered another job interview.

She added: "I thoroughly feel with my hand on my heart that it is because I have gone to the papers (that I have been given an interview).

"I thoroughly believe it is because you intervened.

"I wouldn't believe a word Aldi say."