한국 사회적 기업의 변천에 관한 연구: 역사적 제도주의를 중심으로

Abstract

Although the Korean government has historically focused its efforts on alleviating poverty and creating jobs that can contribute to national development, they have faced various social problems at once. In the midst of finding numerous alternatives to solve this problem, the social economy became known throughout society, so the government institutionalized it. The social economy is an organization or movement that operates based on the public interest as a way to solve the social problems presented in the capitalist economy, and a social enterprise is a for-profit organization that produces, exchanges, and distributes various resources while pursuing community interests. Social enterprises are inevitably affected by institutions and environments, and I tried to understand this from a historical institutionalist perspective. In this paper, institutions refer to acts that influence individuals or organizations formally or informally, and the purpose of this paper is to examine the changes in Korean social enterprises and to suggest implications and directions. As a result of the analysis, social enterprises were born as an alternative to the complex entanglement of different attempts to solve social problems in the fields of welfare and employment from the past. First, as for the normative point of view, after the war, group relief for refugees and the productive community movement to escape the poor continued for a long time, but as the financial crisis led to mass unemployment, a consensus was formed that the government should actively create jobs. However, in response to criticism that the government alone is difficult to create jobs and focuses on support, a new model of social enterprise that pursues publicity and profitability has emerged. Second, from a legal point of view, the law centered on solving short-term problems encountered limitations over time. This led to self-sufficiency and differentiation of social jobs, and as policies were subdivided and categorized, numerous businesses and programs were created. However, social enterprises have absorbed some of the work area and have been institutionalized into laws related to social enterprises. Third, from a practical point of view, practicality was strengthened by the government, including mutual aid. This is the same for working welfare, and to overcome the mass unemployment caused by the foreign exchange crisis, the focus was on the quantitative creation of jobs. Over time, social enterprises have been competing and innovating with some degree of autonomy and self-profit activities, while receiving government support. However, it should not be forgotten that, despite the existence of social enterprises, laws, systems, and policies in many fields of employment and welfare still coexist. In the future, social enterprises must continue to secure a market area in preparation for an aging population and play the role of an employment safety net for retirees to work. Paradoxically, government support may be needed up to a certain point for social enterprises to become self-sustaining.