Voice without influence: small- and medium-sized enterprises in childcare

ABSTRACT

There is abundant research on employee voice, but most focuses on large organisations rather than small organisations, which limits the voice literature. With the aim of addressing this limitation, this study explores different factors affecting voice and its outcomes in small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), utilising semi-structured interviews in three childcare centres in Sydney, Australia. While past literature assumed that employee voice practices implemented in large organisations could be practiced in SMEs creating similar outcomes, the findings of this study indicate that the unitary stance of employees and managers/supervisors in SMEs regarding the definition and perception of voice challenges the practice of voice as indicated by the literature. It suggests that further exploring voice in SMEs would bridge an important gap in voice literature.

KEYWORDS:

• Voice
• participation
• influence
• SMEs
• childcare

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1. The NQF defines ‘small’ as those providers offering one service, i.e. a single-site organisation, most likely to be equivalent to the ABS definition of SME (ACECQA – Australian Children’s Education and Care Quality Authority 2017). The NQF classification of a ‘medium’ provider includes those offering 2–24 services, many of which would exceed the ABS threshold of employment, up to 20.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Amrita Gautam

Amrita Gautam (MRes, MBA) is a PhD candidate at Macquarie University, Sydney. Her PhD focuses on employee voice in changing work environment which is an extension to her MRes study. Her research interests are employee voice, gig economy, precarious work and employee participation.

Raymond Markey

Raymond Markey is Honorary Professor of Employment Relations and former Director of Centre for Workforce Futures, Macquarie University, and was Foundation Director of the New Zealand Work Research Institute at Auckland University of Technology. He is passionate about research on employee voice or participation in decision-making in organisations, and has published widely on this topic.