Health promoting features of WISE employment for people with psychosocial disability

This open-access article, published in the Social Enterprise Journal in 2026, presents findings from a six-year longitudinal case study of a transitional work integration social enterprise (WISE) in regional Australia. A WISE is a business that creates employment for people who have been excluded from the workforce. A transitional WISE goes one step further, supporting employees to eventually move into mainstream employment. The WISE studied was a commercial laundry that hired people with psychosocial disability, meaning people whose mental health conditions are compounded by social and environmental barriers.

The study followed 93 transitional employees over time, using interviews and surveys to understand how WISE employment affected their health and wellbeing. It found that flexible, non-judgmental workplaces can have clear health benefits, including improved income, stronger social connections, greater sense of purpose and better access to food and healthcare. However, it also found that these benefits were not guaranteed. Increased workload pressure, job insecurity and limited opportunities for career progression could undo those gains and, in some cases, contributed to employees leaving the WISE without securing other work.

The article is most relevant to WISE operators, disability employment practitioners, funders and policymakers with an interest in the link between employment, social enterprise and health outcomes.