Many people imagine that a protected workshop and a social enterprise operate on the same principle. That is not true. In this blog post, we will show their differences.

According to Act No. 5/2004, Section 55, a protected workshop is defined as a workplace where a legal or natural person establishes more than one workplace for a citizen with a disability who has difficulty accessing the labour market. Working conditions, including the arrangement of working hours and productivity requirements, are adapted to the employee’s health condition.

In simple terms, protected workshops are aimed mainly at people with different types of disabilities who, due to their health condition, have limited opportunities for labour market integration. They often arise from initiatives by parents who have children with disabilities and struggle to find them employment. An example is the TOP Art protected workshop in Bratislava.

About social enterprises, Act No. 112/2018. Under Section 5 is Social Enterprise and Enterprise with Social Impact. A social enterprise is an entity of the social economy that continuously carries out economic activity independently, in its own name and under its own responsibility.

In social enterprises, not only people with disabilities may be employed, but also people who have not been able to find work for a long time (mothers after parental leave, people with limited work experience)Social enterprises can be established by self-governments, cities, municipalities.

Social enterprises have been operating in Slovakia for 7 years. This was announced by the Minister of Social Affairs and Family of the Slovak Republic at his press conference on 6.11.2025. At the same press conference, he also announced that the peak growth of social enterprises was in 2023, when profits in social enterprises amounted to 7 000 000 euros. The main topic of the press conference, however, was that inspections of social enterprises would be carried out. These inspections will be conducted under the authority of the Supreme Audit Office. You can learn more from the press conference at this link: https://www.ta3.com/relacia/1019147/tb-e-tomasa-a-l-andrassyho-o-posilneni-kontroly-socialnych-podnikov

The impetus for the emergence of social enterprises came from the global economic crisis in 2009, which triggered widespread public dissatisfaction with the functioning of the global economic system. It stimulated interest in more inclusive and plural economic models.

In 2013, the European Commission launched a study in 29 European countries, where it mapped the need for social enterprises. In the image below, countries with specific legal forms or laws for social enterprises are shown.

  • Finland, Lithuania and Slovakia have laws focused on integration into work.
  • Italy is the only country that has a law on social cooperatives and a law on social enterprises.
  • Poland has a specific legal form for social enterprises.

Source: A map of social enterprises and their eco-systems in Europe, Executive Summary. Ref. Ares(2014)3811561 - 17/11/2014. European Commission 2014. Available: https://ec.europa.eu/docsroom/documents/7561/attachments/1/translations/en/renditions/pdf (23.11.2025)

A summary of good practice in social enterprises is, for example, Groupe SOS in France. This social enterprise operates in a broad range of fields including social services, healthcare, education and ecology. It employs more than 20,000 people and runs thousands of facilities focused on helping vulnerable groups (seniors, children, the unemployed and people without housing. Near our northern borders of the country in Lower Silesia is the social enterprise Panato. It focuses on various activities, and in its beginning its members worked on a voluntary basis, while all profits were invested in developing the initiative. In Slovakia, the most flourishing social enterprise is Bivio. In this social enterprise, a guesthouse with a restaurant and other services for people is operating. In this social enterprise, people with intellectual disabilities are employed in most cases. Since one could write much more about protected workshops and social enterprises, I will consider turning this blog into a more professional article.

More could be written about protected workshops and social enterprises. Therefore, I am considering expanding this blog and turning it into a specialist article that will address in more detail the legislative framework, examples of good practice, and the possibilities for developing social economy in Slovakia and abroad.

Author: Mgr. Michaela Lorková Contact the author: michaela.herdova05@gmail.com