This master’s thesis revolves around the issue of how subsidized employees (“fleksjobbere”) are included and retained on the labour market – an issue presently explored via a social business in Northern Jutland, Denmark.
The company was selected due to its experience with employment of people not capable of meeting regular standards and conditions in the Danish labour market.
The study is informed by and situated between the research on welfare dealing with the paradigm shift from welfare to workfare, and the development of alternative forms of enterprise explored in recent years. New research on such enterprises indicates that these latter types of organization carry the greatest promise and procure superior results in conducting and achieving social responsibility; that is, employing and retaining subsidized employees.
According to the recognition theory of Axel Honneth, a person has to enter into a work-based partnership in order to achieve recognition, and as such acquire the opportunities for realizing and achieving “the good life”.
The thesis seeks to bolster and operationalize this fit between the case (practice) and interpretive approach (theory) via the theory of "de seks guldkorn", which presents and defines six factors that constitute and contribute to a good working environment, which this study considers extendable to inclusion on the labour market.
Based on the qualitative case study including two individual interviews and a focus group interview, the thesis concludes that the strong values of inclusiveness and faith in the individual (empowerment) are instrumental in creating the framework for achieving responsibility, influence, meaningfulness, support, reward and the meeting of [evt.: diverse] requirements in the work of a social business.
In addition to this conclusion, a special kind of employee in the social enterprise is identified: the so-called professional enthusiast, or “fiery soul”, who by virtue of their commitment to creating these frameworks for the individual employee to gain recognition and a good working environment constitute an especially vital and trademark characteristic of the social enterprise.
The major downside of hiring and including subsidized employees in a social business is the bureaucratic difficulties stemming from engagements with municipal partners. Also, economic challenges may arise if a subsidized employee is not able to earn their own salary.