There are an estimated 12,000 social enterprises operating across Australia. Together, they contribute $21.3 billion to the Australian economy, representing approximately 1% of GDP.
Work integration social enterprises (WISEs) are diverse, and this diversity is not well-understood by policymakers and funders. With increasing attention being paid to WISE in government reforms to employment services in general and inclusive employment in particular, better understanding of the characteristics of WISE and the diversity of WISE models is needed.
Drawing on a short survey of participants conducted at the 2025 Social Enterprise Jobs Summit hosted by Social Enterprise Australia and White Box Enterprises, this report – the fourth in a series arising from the Australian Research Council Linkage project, Activating Employment Futures Through Work Integration Social Enterprise (WISE) (LP220100323) – presents a taxonomy of the key characteristics and differences of WISE in Australia.
The survey results suggest:
- WISE activities range from building people’s employability, programs that support people to transition into the mainstream labour market, and creating permanent employment within WISE and/or their parent or subsidiary organisations.
- Most WISEs are not-for-profit, but there is a meaningful minority of for-profit businesses and entities that operate as nested/hybrid structures.
- The WISE sector is almost evenly split between standalone enterprises and business units embedded within larger organisations.
- Compensation of people WISE seek to support is mixed. Industrial award wage employment is common, but many WISEs also compensate through unpaid training and supported wage arrangements.
While some government funding is a common part of WISEs’ revenue mix, this is not universal and comes from multiple levels of government.