Over 40 years in manufacturing and business, 30 were spent establishing social enterprises that provide meaningful employment for people with disabilities. One thing has always stood out throughout my working life and continues to this day.
Meaningful work is important in everyone’s life. Regardless of ability (or disability) or talent, meaningful work is an innate human need and is an essential part of our quality of life.
Most people, including many people with disability, agree that mainstream employment (open employment) within the broader community offers the best outcomes for people with disability. But rarely do we discuss what meaningful or valued work means for those to whom the service is offered.
The sad reality is that there are usually not enough jobs, accepting employers, or political will, to make it happen for everyone, particularly for our most vulnerable people with high support needs who may require ongoing levels of support, training, workplace modification or have other episodic support needs which restrict ongoing participation in open employment.
Supported Employment
This is where Supported Employment plays an important role in our society. If we as a community want to ensure all people with disability have the right to choose employment/work regardless of how challenging these support needs may be. We need to continue to fund Supported Employment services to make this choice available.
Apart from a few exceptions, many supported employment services are little more than sheltered workshops run by well-meaning charities that, in an attempt to keep large groups of people busy, sit them down around a table to pack items into bags. Many run low-cost contract services such as lawn mowing, cleaning, or laundry and, due to their low viability, can only afford to pay a token wage.
The net result is that, rather than being seen as valued employees working in a real business, people are promoted through fundraising campaigns to meet an ever-decreasing viability cap. This creates a wrong impression: that people with disability are helpless victims deserving only our pity and charity.
For a variety of reasons, they discourage inclusive workplaces in the community and rarely employ others at full award wages (e.g., skilled production, trades, engineering, and industry management). The staff they hire are more like minders than colleagues. Rather than working with and alongside people or providing meaningful support and training, they operate more like a medical model, prescribing support, focusing on risk management, and collecting data to meet funding compliance criteria.
Consequently, they have little capacity to develop their businesses or industry expertise, let alone to assess business performance, product or service costs, or the productivity of their workforce to pay fair wages.
Social Enterprises
A Social Enterprise is a for-profit venture established to address a social need. But unlike a commercial business, all profits are retained and reinvested in the venture to ensure its sustainability and growth. Consequently, not focused on charity fundraising activities but more on improving the business’s operations.
Successful attributes for a Social Enterprise whose social purpose is supported employment:
- They operate in a sustainable business area
- Use person-centred approaches and offer choice
- They apply Social Role Valorisation principles
- They encourage an integrated workplace. If the business cannot sustain the employment of people on full award wages, it will never pay fair wages to people with disabilities or measure participation.
- Governance and management are purpose-driven – advocacy, mission, and vision.
- Good business practice and financial management.
- Employment and training are person-centred, with a focus on building independence and workplace modifications.
- Dignity of risk. Allows individuals to take risks and learn new job roles. Stepping into the unknown is part and parcel of treating people with disability as dignified adults.
- An entrepreneurial board. Still essential to have strong financial skills on the board, but equally important is an understanding of the organisation’s purpose and core businesses, and a willingness to grow, improve, and change as needed.
- The ability to know when to let go of an unprofitable business and start a new business when opportunities present themselves.
All sounds simple, right? No!, It’s really hard work, and this is why purpose, mission, and vision are so important, as it requires extra effort from boards, management, and staff
A big challenge is finding a good business; bigger still is getting that business up and running. 8 out of 10 new businesses fail within their first 18 months. It is even more challenging to find a business that offers opportunities for groups of people. Then, its another dimension altogether: to do all those things while providing support, training, workplace and work-practice modifications for people with disabilities to participate meaningfully.
Personal experience in Social Enterprises I have been connected with includes:
CEO of SA Group Enterprises Inc. – 1995-2014
- Aspitech – Electronics recycling and computer refurbishing – 2007-2014
- Inprint Design – Graphic design, print brokering and website development – 1995-2014
- Link Disability Magazine – Full-colour national print magazine publication – 2005-2014
- Optcom – Website, Database development and multimedia – 2000-2005
- Precision Cartridges – Toner cartridge remanufacture – 1995-1998
- Wire Ware – Point of Sale Display Stand Manufacturer – 1995-2014
- Worklink Enclave – Contract Laboratory Staff – 2007-2014
- Your Employment Success – Specialist DES Employment Services for the Deaf – 2003-2014
General Manager of Qualitec Limited – STP Demonstration Research Project, University of Origan, Macquarie University and Sydney University. First Social Enterprise in Australia – Electronics design and manufacturing – 1986-1995