ILPC 2026

Flexibilization of the work force as well as a rise in migrant workers in European societies has led to an increase in the share of employees with an insecure position at work. For this group of employees, the burden to speak up in situations where they experience problems or conflicts at work may be especially high because their insecure position makes them more vulnerable to retaliation. Currently, no insights are available for (variations in) the prevalence, intensity and types of suppression tactics deployed. Data on suppression of employee voice is scarce and notoriously difficult to obtain because of its sensitivity. In this paper, we explore differences in voice at work between standard employees and flexible workers. By doing so, we aim to develop a theory on the suppression of employee voice. In addition, we report on a survey instrument measuring employee voice suppression. The data, collected among a representative sample of the Dutch labor force (N=7599), enable us to study who speaks up at work and under which conditions and in what ways employers attempt to suppress what types of voices of employees. This paper contributes to our understanding of current barriers to employee voice. The insights obtained from our study can offer valuable contributions to both scholarly and public debates on employment relations in the post-industrial era, in particular on the voice of non-standard workers.