December 10, 2024
Academy of Management Discoveries recently published a study, co-authored by Michel Anteby, Professor of Management and Organizations, Audrey L. Holm, Questrom PhD Candidate, and Bella Fong, CAS alum, examining the dynamics of workers’ efforts to voice concerns in the workplace and how management responds to those efforts.
The study specifically examines a unionization drive among puppeteers at California’s Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. Central to the analysis is a phenomenon the authors call “voice veneer,” where employers appear to address workers’ concerns by agreeing to changes but simultaneously undermine the effectiveness of those changes.
The article emphasizes that it is not enough for managers to merely give the impression of addressing workers’ concerns; they must also ensure that any agreed-upon changes are genuinely implemented and result in tangible improvements to workers’ conditions.
The authors warn that failing to genuinely implement agreed-upon changes can have negative consequences for workers, managers, and society as a whole.
