What skillsets so you have? Are you open to doing work from home? What industry are you interested in?

Hello. I'm legally blind and only have one eye. I have had success working for universities and societies as a Coordinator and with some experience you can make decent money (the jobs are usually between $40k entry level to $75k experienced). The last three places I have worked for have also offered pre-tax public transportation benefits. I never mention that I'm blind until after I'm hired. If you look for places that have their own campus (like hospitals, universities, rehab centers, even tech or credit card companies) you are much less likely to be asked to have transportation.

Hi! I’d suggest starting with Fortune 500 companies. They tend to hire better and be aware.

I’d also suggest never volunteering that you take the bus. If they ask if you have transport, just say yes you do and that you’re X time amount away. If they say you need a driver’s license for a job that clearly doesn’t require you to drive then you can say that you only brought your ID because the job listing said absolutely nothing about you driving for the company and that you’re annoyed/upset/etc that it was never listed. (Basically, embarras them so they drop it and take the ID. Is this fully right to do? Maybe not but it works.)

I personally work in dishpit with very limited vision (just really low vision type). I’ve also worked in basic retail & crop jobs.

You can also maybe ask Division of rehabilitation if that’s a thing where you live..!!

Also it is legal for non profits or certain types of business to only hire intellectual disability people because that disability requires often requires higher structure and such, easier to manage if all are and it provides jobs to people who normally get instantly turned away. Even more so than physically disabled people. (I have a mild one and could qualify for those jobs but I don’t because I can hide it for the most part.)

I have RB too and I know how frustrating it can be!

1) if they bring up transportation just say it’s handled, it’s your problem not there’s

2) be positive, find something about the job you’re excited about and let that shine

3) show them how you can make their job easier/ company better. I know you want the job but they are horsing someone to solve a problem they have, find out what that problem is and show them why you’re a great fit.

4) find a good company, if a company does hire you because you’re blind just move on you don’t want to work for that type of company. I know there are laws about it but I’d rather work with good people.

When I was job hunting I interviewed with a bunch of companies but ended up landing in a good place. You will too!

Best of luck!

I have had a similar situation happen to me. I applied to a cleaning job and they seemed interested. When I had the interview they asked if I had another job and I told them no I was on disability. They seemed okay with it and a few days later they emailed me. They wrote that they didnt feel like the job was a good fit due to my vision impairment. I am not blind but have low vision. I got really upset and even cried. I clean my own house and can see dirt and dust just fine. I decided to go back to school after that. I wish you all the luck in the world. I know it can be tough but keep your head up. You will find something.

Do not accept a second fiddle career. Being blind is expensive. Do not settle.

I did start freelancing in the end, but only after working for a big company for a while. Big companies tend to have more bureaucracy but also have more resources to do things.

I wouldn't really expect disability specific organisations to help much. They're going to have jobs that suck or end up with you becoming someone's mascot, as you've said. Forget it. Don't start with the commission for the blind or some company that's specifically looking for disabilities, start with the job ads, like anyone else would. If that means getting help to read those job ads, get help.

After that it's like anyone else. Find something you're into and can reasonably do that plays to your strengths, apply, and see if you can make it happen. Obviously don't apply for something where they need drivers or to be an art critic or whatever but beyond that you need to rock up with a problem solving attitude because the potential employer is probably not going to.

I will be very upfront and say that freelancing is not for everyone. Being your own boss is good but it's also doing two jobs at once and if you've got major sight issues then you are already doing two jobs at once, so that becomes three. It puts you under a lot of pressure to make everything look effortless but honestly nobody says anything if you put your cab rides on the invoice when you're self employed, whereas if you're an employee they get really pissy about it. I just took two cab rides across London today and I'm not worried about who's paying for it.

Don't get a special disabled blind person job. Get a job. You will have to work twice as hard as everyone else but that's not anyone's fault and it is worth it.

Hate to hear about your frustrating experiences. I looked up the resources in New Jersey. Have you tried CBVI? Sounds like they have some resources to help find employment and even resources to help you set up your own business to freelance. FAQs 7,8, 9 and 22 are about employment. Here's a link to their FAQ page: $1

Hope that's helpful!

I don't have any suggestions for you but just wanted to say I ran into the "we only want people with intellectual disabilities" BS last year. Was very bizzare to me.

I’m ina similar situation which has led me back to school. Waiting to hear if I’m in to start VRT training this fall. Fingers crossed. Fortunately my undergrad was self-funded so my MA will be funded by the state agency, to get me off of SSDI.

‘Have you spoken with a CRC of how & when to broach your blindness in an interview?

What type of jobs are you applying for?

Consider joining Inclusively. I haven’t worked with them myself, but they’re in my list of companies to approach about making hired in the future.

https://inclusively.com