Heidi Jay is a Moruya local who suffers vision impairment because of optic nerve hypoplasia.

She has been struggling to secure permanent employment since 2013, having applied for more jobs than she can remember and always being knocked back.

She said it was "really, really tough," to find employment as someone with a disability.

"A lot of people aren't willing to take on people with disabilities, especially things like vision impairment," she said.

Ms Jay dreams of owning a multipurpose case and has achieved a certificate two and three in hospitality and completed a semester of kitchen operations in pursuit of her goal.

However, she said the largest hurdle was convincing people to give her an opportunity.

"People don't have faith in me that I can do it and don't want to give me a shot," she said.

"I might not be able to do the things they want me to do straightaway, but I'm not a quitter. I'll try and try until there's absolutely nothing else I can do.

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"No matter what people say I will not give up."

Ms Jay works one day per week at Moruya-based disability service provider Yumaro, but wants to branch into hospitality jobs and start gaining experience.

"I won't give up on any of my dreams unless there is nothing else I can do," she said.

Even for those people who have found employment, retaining that job and managing expectations can be really difficult.

Moruya local Lizzie Godwin's Down syndrome makes processing language difficult, preferring written instructions to verbal, and she requires step by step directions through a task. Once she understands what a job entails, she is able to repeat processes effectively over and over. She gets frustrated when people get irritated at her for not understanding the instructions they gave her.

Her mother, Kathy Godwin, said Ms Godwin's confusion was sometimes interpreted as obstinacy.

Until recently, Ms Godwin has held secure jobs over the past 10 years, but said there was a lot of confusion amongst employers about expectations of workers with a disability.

She is slower to complete tasks than an average worker, but has no expectation to earn the same wage.

The federal government supported wage system (SWS) completes an annual assessment of Ms Godwin, and determines she performs at 20 per cent of an average worker output, and therefore she receives 20 per cent of an average worker's wage. The employer pays the reduced wage amount.

She said while employers paid a reduced wage, they often expected employees with disabilities to function with the same output as other workers.

Like Ms Jay, Ms Godwin works one day per week at Yumaro, and is currently looking for another job after losing the job she held for more than 10 years.

She said having a job was important to her because it paid her, and let her engage with the community - both of which made her feel important.

"I can help people," she said.

She owns a dog and a cat and dreams of being a dog groomer.

Ms Jay said the issue was not that disabled people were not able to work in jobs, but they were not given a chance.

She would like more employers to be brave enough to take people on with a disability and give them an opportunity to prove themselves.