Reconceptualizing sustainable employment: a new framework for assessing the impact of job training in the energy sector in Amsterdam Zuidoost

Purpose This research aims to draw on the literature of sustainable employment, social entrepreneurship and social accounting to construct a framework for assessing energy sector job training programs and community initiatives to stimulate employment opportunities in Amsterdam Zuidoost (Southeast); a district with a high percentage of residents who are vulnerable in the labor market. Design/methodology/approach This research compares two concurrent frameworks used to validate investment in job training among vulnerable job seekers, social cost benefit analysis and social return on investment (SROI). Combining factors from both frameworks, the authors compare the private, community and non-profit enterprise training programs and entrepreneurial initiatives in the energy sector that are available to residents. Findings This research reveals energy sector job training programs and initiatives create multiple values that can be calculated using a combined social accounting framework. Private sector job training initiatives are considered more likely to produce sustainable employment because they offer career pathways and a combination of hard skills and certifications; however, they are largely inaccessible to vulnerable job seekers. Community enterprises play an important role in facilitating contact between residents, housing corporations and local government. Non-profit enterprises have an advantage over community enterprises in that they pioneer scalable sustainability initiatives, demonstrating value that neither the private nor community enterprises create. Research limitations/implications This research is limited in that the analysis does not consider the perspective of the participants of these programs and relies on publicly available data. The research contributes to the existing literature by presenting a modified framework for evaluating initiatives that strive toward sustainable employment. This study introduces new factors into the framework (e.g. accessibility, diversification, sensitization, addressing the SDGs) to highlight the added value of community and non-profit enterprise initiatives. Practical implications This paper compares the strengths and weaknesses of different types of enterprises that provide job training and entrepreneurship initiatives in the energy sector and the role of the government in supporting different types of initiatives. The paper concludes with a set of recommendations for policymakers, employment social enterprises and other institutional actors to further develop sustainable employment opportunities in the district. Social implications This paper translates abstract ideas about sustainable employment into insights that can directly be used to inform local action on employment and sustainability. The paper compares private sector and social enterprise programs and initiatives to demonstrate how social accounting may favor commercial approaches that do not address local needs. Originality/value This study argues investments in targeted job training can contribute to sustainable employment opportunities in sectors like renewable energy. The research combines theoretical insights from Teasdale (2010) and Hogenstijn et al. (2016) to demonstrate that efforts to combat economic inequality through the provision of job training have the potential to further integrate sustainability into their practices. The combined social accounting framework reflects the hybrid nature of social enterprise solutions and illustrates community and non-profit enterprises produce values that may be ignored by a conventional use of SROI.