A Niche or Social Enterprises: How the inefficacy of government and unrepsoniveness of corporations led to the rise of social enterprises in South Korea

In academic literature, there is little dialogue on the development and current statuses of corporate responsibility in South Korea. This article aims to provide insight in these issues, particularly looking at the shortcomings of CSR in South Korea that created an opportunity for social enterprise entities to fill that void. This refers to the fact that South Korean CSR relies heavily on cash or product donation; this method of CSR failed to properly address concerns posed by society and the government. Not only did the Korean brand of CSR fail to remediate the unemployment problems the government struggled with, but its initiatives also did not reflect the preferences of the public. The inefficacy of government policies in the early 2000s also contributed to growing frustrations, and finally in 2007, the government passed legislation that codified social enterprises. Social enterprises are mandated to hire or serve marginalized populations while in return receive benefits such as subsidies and/or tax breaks. Statistics of social enterprises reveal that while social enterprises are highly dependent on the government, they are also more responsive to the social needs preferences of the public.