Work Integration of People with Disabilities in Korean Social Enterprises

In this study, I question whether social enterprise can significantly help work integration of persons with disabilities (or PWDs). Particularly, I analyze the case of Korea which recently passed a bill (or Social Enterprise Support Law, SESL) setting the disabled as one of four target groups. Unlike former state-led policies, not all but some cases showed that social enterprises can create numerous decent jobs for the disabled if some conditions are met. The result illustrates four issues. First, people with disabilities are excluded in the labor market: not only their chance of getting a job is more restricted than other socially disadvantaged groups, but also the insufficient jobs allotted to the disabled are unevenly distributed by the type and severity of illness. Second, the tendency of state-led initiate distinguishes Korean social enterprises both from European ones and U.S. non-profit organizations. Third, although people with disabilities were excluded from the legislation process, they actively adopted themselves in order to participate as a social enterprise. Fourth, networking with other organizations, especially with for-profit firms is essential for work integration of the disabled. By this study, I hope Korea’s experience to be a worthy guideline for other Asian countries in initiating social enterprises which stands for the disabled. If further cross-national studies are followed, it will be much beneficial in modeling Asian disabled-centered social enterprises.