This chapter covers research carried out in the past decade on the learning processes and educational practices of workers in Work Integration Social Enterprises (WISEs hereafter). As part of the Social Economy, they search for social and not just financial profit in their services. WISEs attempt to contribute to the social inclusion of the adults they hire, who are sent to the companies by the Social Services with a certificate of social exclusion1. In the chapter we frame the role of the Third Sector as active provider of vocational training2. We analyse the use that these institutions and companies make of integration contracts within WISEs and how they handle work-based learning. We briefly describe our research approach and discuss the following issues: Are adult apprenticeships appealing for the vocational education of these adults? How does informal learning in WISEs turn into accredited qualifications? How do they struggle between life skills, knowledge about work and the labour market as well as specific occupational skills? To what extent are these companies instrumental to a precarious labour market or do they also introduce alternative understandings of the labour relation and of production processes? We illustrate these questions with examples of different companies. © Peter Lang AG, International Academic Publishers, Bern 2021.
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