Melissa doesn’t see her disability as a barrier to employment anymore.
She’d like other people and employers, to see it that way too.
The support she’s received from her employers and the team from APM Employment Services has transformed Melissa’s outlook.
"They've never seen me as a barrier. They've seen me as me, not somebody that's got a disability," she says.
"I would like future businesses to see that a disability is not a barrier."
Melissa has low lung capacity, a side effect of the autoimmune disorders she lives with and which sometimes causes her to experience shortness of breath and fatigue.
Melissa worked as a cleaner for many years, but she found working with some of the chemicals in cleaning products began to cause issues for her health.
Unable to continue in her role Melissa says she didn’t know how she could find a job that was right for her.
That’s when she came to APM Employment Services.