Employee Silence as a Barrier to Career Development among Blue-Collar Workers
Abstract
This paper examines the relationship between employee silence and career development among the employees of palm oil industry in Malaysia. Employee silence has a significant impact on the training access, superior support, career success and future employability which overall affects the attraction of new talents to palm oil sector. This conceptual paper explores how different type of employee silence plays an important aspect towards employee’s career development in palm oil sector with job satisfaction as a mediating variable. It was found through literatures that reduced employee silence and supported by supervisory trust and psychological safety can significantly increase career development opportunities among employees and can attract more locals to join the industry with more clear career trajectories.
Downloads
References
Adams-Prassl, A., Boneva, T., Golin, M., & Rauh, C. (2023). Perceived returns to job search. Labour Economics, 80. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.labeco.2022.102307
Adnyani, N. L. P. R., & Dewi, A. A. S. K. (2019). Pengaruh Pengalaman Kerja, Prestasi Kerja dan Pelatihan Terhadap Pengembangan Karier Karyawan. E-Jurnal Manajemen Universitas Udayana, 8(7), 4073. https://doi.org/10.24843/ejmunud.2019.v08.i07.p03
Afshan, G., Kashif, M., Sattayawaksakul, D., Cheewaprakobkit, P., & Wijenayake, S. (2022). Abusive supervision, supervisor undermining, and turnover intentions: mediation of quiescent silence and desire to seek revenge among Thai banking frontliners. Management Research Review, 45(11), 1479–1502. https://doi.org/10.1108/MRR-03-2021-0240
Ahmad Mokhtar, M., Zakaria, M., Mohamad Nasri, N., & Mohammad Yasin, R. (2022). Students’ Knowledge, Perception and Interest Towards Sustainable Palm Oil Industry. Journal of Pharmaceutical Negative Results, 13(9), 2022. https://doi.org/10.47750/pnr.2022.13.S09.862
Akhbari, A., Kutty, P. K., Chuen, O. C., & Ibrahim, S. (2020). A study of palm oil mill processing and environmental assessment of palm oil mill effluent treatment. Environmental Engineering Research, 25(2), 212–221. https://doi.org/10.4491/eer.2018.452
Alarabiat, Y. A., & Eyupoglu, S. (2022). Is Silence Golden? The Influence of Employee Silence on the Transactional Leadership and Job Satisfaction Relationship. Sustainability (Switzerland), 14(22). https://doi.org/10.3390/su142215205
Alas, R., Kraus, A., & Niglas, K. (2009). Manufacturing strategies and choices in cultural contexts. Journal of Business Economics and Management, 10(4), 279–289. https://doi.org/10.3846/1611-1699.2009.10.279-289
Andrew, J. D. (2002). Fundamentals of Organizational Behavior: An Applied Perspective. Elsevier.
Arifin, A., Mat Taib, H., Aman, Z., & Abdul Rahim, A. R. (2021). Factors Influencing Turnover Intention among Malaysian Unskilled Workers in Oil Palm Plantation. Malaysian Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities (MJSSH), 6(9), 374–381. https://doi.org/10.47405/mjssh.v6i9.1002
Arthur, M. B., Khapova, S. N., & Wilderom, C. P. M. (2005). Career success in a boundaryless career world. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 2(26), 177–202). https://doi.org/10.1002/job.290
Asuquo, P. N., & Inaja, A. E. (2013). Fostering Sustainable Career Development and Employability Among Young People in the Changing World of Work: Employers’ Perspective. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 84, 1492–1499. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2013.06.778
Barber, S. J. (2020). A New Perspective on Blue-Collar Work: Examining the Relevance of Common Career Development Theories for Blue-Collar Workers in Manufacturing. University Honors Theses. https://doi.org/10.15760/honors.953
Boon Hwei, R. B., & Anuar, A. (2024). The Determinants of Job Satisfaction Towards Turnover Intention Among Employees in Banking Industry. Malaysian Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities (MJSSH), 9(3), e002733. https://doi.org/10.47405/mjssh.v9i3.2733
Castellanos-Navarrete, A., Tobar-Tomás, W. V., & López-Monzón, C. E. (2019). Development without change: Oil palm labour regimes, development narratives, and disputed moral economies in Mesoamerica. Journal of Rural Studies, 71, 169–180. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrurstud.2018.08.011
Che Omar, A. R., Ishak, S., & Abdul Manaf, A. (2023). Quality Income: What is in the Mind of the Palm Oil Smallholders? International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 13(9). https://doi.org/10.6007/ijarbss/v13-i9/18536
Chioma Joy, O. (2025). World Journal of Entrepreneurial Development Studies Relationship between Career Development and Organizational Commitment in the Manufacturing Sector in Delta State, Nigeria, 2(10), 2695-2483 https://doi.org/10.56201/wjeds.v10.no2.2025.pg57.86
Detert, J. R., & Edmondson, A. C. (2011). Implicit Voice Theories: Taken-For-Granted Rules of Self-Censorship at Work. Academy of Management Journal, 54(3), 461-488. https://doi.org/10.5465/AMJ.2011.61967925
E-Vahdati, S., Noor, N. A. M., Mah, P. Y., Chuah, F., & Md Isa, F. (2023). Social and Environmental Sustainability, Workers’ Well-Being, and Affective Organizational Commitment in Palm Oil Industries. Sustainability (Switzerland), 15(12). https://doi.org/10.3390/su15129514
Fordjour, G. A., Ho, H. C. Y., Hou, W. K., Chiu, S. W. K., & Chan, C. C. H. (2025). Determinants of Career Development Outcomes Among Blue-Collar Workers: A Comprehensive Review of Factors and Theories from the Past Decade of Research. Human Resource Development Review, 1-55 https://doi.org/10.1177/15344843251387377
Graen, G. B., & Uhl-Bien, M. (1995). Relationship-Based Approach to Leadership: Development of Leader-Member Exchange (LMX) Theory of Leadership over 25 Years: Applying a Multi-Level Multi-Domain Perspective. Leadership Quarterly, 6(2), 219–247. https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/managementfacpub
Guo, Y., Kang, H., Shao, B., & Halvorsen, B. (2019). Organizational politics as a blindfold: Employee work engagement is negatively related to supervisor-rated work outcomes when organizational politics is high. Personnel Review, 48(3), 784–798. https://doi.org/10.1108/PR-07-2017-0205
Hao, L., Zhu, H., He, Y., Duan, J., Zhao, T., & Meng, H. (2022). When Is Silence Golden? A Meta-analysis on Antecedents and Outcomes of Employee Silence. Journal of Business and Psychology, 37(5), 1039–1063. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10869-021-09788-7
Heimerl, P., Haid, M., Benedikt, L., & Scholl-Grissemann, U. (2020). Factors Influencing Job Satisfaction in Hospitality Industry. SAGE Open, 10(4). https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244020982998
Hennequin, E. (2007). What “career success” means to blue-collar workers. Career Development International, 12(6), 565–581. https://doi.org/10.1108/13620430710822029
Jing, S., Zeng, Y., Xu, T., Yin, Q., Ogbu, K. O., & Huang, J. (2024). Will career plateau lead to employee silence? A moderated mediation model. Nankai Business Review International, 15(1), 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1108/NBRI-04-2022-0036
John, S. P. (2019). Employee Silence: A Meta-Analytic Review. The International Journal of Indian Psychology, 7(1), 2349-3429. https://doi.org/10.25215/0701.040
Jungst, M., & Verbeeck, C. (2025). The moderating role of employment contract in the relationship between technology overload and employee silence. Information and Management, 62(2). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.im.2025.104101
Knoll, M., Fida, R., Marzocchi, I., Searle, R. H., Connelly, C. E., & Ronchetti, M. (2025). Quiet Workaholics? The Link Between Workaholism and Employee Silence and Moral Voice as Explained by the Social-Cognitive Theory of Morality. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 46(5), 745–764. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.2867
Knoll, M., Hall, R. J., & Weigelt, O. (2019). A Longitudinal Study of the Relationships Between Four Differentially Motivated Forms of Employee Silence and Burnout. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 24(5), 572–589. https://doi.org/10.1037/ocp0000143
Knoll, M., & van Dick, R. (2013). Do I Hear the Whistle...? A First Attempt to Measure Four Forms of Employee Silence and Their Correlates. Journal of Business Ethics, 113(2), 349–362. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-012-1308-4
Koekemoer, E., Le Roux Fourie, H., & Jorgensen, L. I. (2019). Exploring Subjective Career Success Among Blue-Collar Workers: Motivators That Matter. Journal of Career Development, 46(3), 314-331. ttps://doi.org/10.1177/0894845318763942
Kushairi, A., & Amiruddin, M. D. (2020). Development of new oil palm cultivars in Malaysia. Journal of Oil Palm Research, 32(3), 420–426. https://doi.org/10.21894/jopr.2020.0037
Lainidi, O., Johnson, J., Griffin, B., Koutsimani, P., Mouratidis, C., Keyworth, C., & O’Connor, D. B. (2025). Associations between burnout, employee silence and voice: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Psychology & Health, 1–21. https://doi.org/10.1080/08870446.2025.2509074
Lerebulan, H. E. N., & Amalia, L. (2023). The Effect of Employee Silence on Turnover Intention, with Burnout As a Mediation Variable and Coworker Support As a Moderating Variable. Indonesian Journal of Business Analytics, 3(1), 41–56. https://doi.org/10.55927/ijba.v3i1.3071
Li, Y., Li, C., Zhang, Y., Gong, X., & Hu, X. (2024). Is silence golden in political workplace? The dual effects of silence on career success in China. Current Psychology, 43(41), 32422–32436. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-024-06453-z
Lu, X., Zhu, W., & Tsai, F. S. (2019). Social responsibility toward the employees and career development sustainability during manufacturing transformation in China. Sustainability (Switzerland), 11(17). https://doi.org/10.3390/su11174778
Montuori, P., Sorrentino, M., Sarnacchiaro, P., Di Duca, F., Nardo, A., Ferrante, B., D’Angelo, D., Di Sarno, S., Pennino, F., Masucci, A., Triassi, M., & Nardone, A. (2022). Job Satisfaction: Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices Analysis in a Well-Educated Population. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(21). https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192114214
Morrison, E. W. (2014). Employee voice and silence. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 1, 173–197. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-031413-091328
Morrison, E. W. (2023). Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior Employee Voice and Silence: Taking Stock a Decade Later. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 10, 79-107. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-120920
Mwesigwa, R., Tusiime, I., & Ssekiziyivu, B. (2020). Leadership styles, job satisfaction and organizational commitment among academic staff in public universities. Journal of Management Development, 39(2), 253–268. https://doi.org/10.1108/JMD-02-2018-0055
Na Ayudhya, P. K., & Plangsorn, B. (2024). Reskilling and Upskilling Digital Competencies: A Systematic Review for Financial Sector Employee’s’ Development. Proceedings of the International Conference on Teaching, Education and Learning, 2(1) 25–35. https://doi.org/10.32789/tel.2023.1003
Naseem, A., Sheikh, S. E., Khusro, P., & Gphr, P. M. (2011). Impact of Employee Satisfaction on Success of Organization: Relation between Customer Experience and Employee Satisfaction. International Journal of Multidisciplinary Sciences and Engineering, 2(5), 41-46. https://www.ijmse.org/Volume2/Issue5/paper8.pdf
Nitafan, R. P. (2020). Employee Silence, Organizational Commitment, and Job Burnout of Regular Employees in Local Government Units in the Cotabato Province, Philippines: A Keystone for Intervention. International Journal of English Literature and Social Sciences, 5(6), 1932–1948. https://doi.org/10.22161/ijels.56.20
Noor, E., Zulkiflee, D., Puteh, F., & Ahmad, J. (2022). Generation Y Youth Involvement in 3D Industries: A Preliminary Evidence from Malaysia. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 12(10) 2672 - 2696.
Özcan, B. M., Ozcan, S. E., Geyikci, U. B., Gülova, A., & Sancak, F. M. (2023). Increasing the Personal Development of White-Collar Employees for Sustainable Employability. Sustainability (Switzerland), 15(19). https://doi.org/10.3390/su151914554
Pinder, C. C., & Harlos, K. P. (2001). Employee silence: Quiescence and acquiescence as responses to perceived injustice. Research in Personnel and Human Resources Management, 20, 331–369. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0742-7301(01)20007-3
Randev, K. K., Jha, J. K., & Shukla, K. (2025). How and when does perceived organizational politics undermine employee performance? Examination through the lens of opportunistic silence in Indian HPDOs. International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, 74(2), 587–612. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJPPM-05-2023-0235
Riantoputra, C. D., Maharisa, W., & Faridhal, T. (2016). Acquiescent and defensive silence in an Indonesian context. Makara Human Behavior Studies in Asia, 20(2), 121. https://doi.org/10.7454/mssh.v20i2.3493
Rijal, S., Sesario, R., Makassar, U. N., & Pontianak, P. N. (2024). The Relationship Between Employee Training, Career Development, and Job Satisfaction: A Case Study of Medium Scale Enterprise in Bandung City, International Journal of Business, Law and Education, 5(2). https://ijble.com/index.php/journal/index
Ryan, L. K., & Alper, K. (2021). Employee career development and turnover :A moderated mediation model. International Journal of Organizational Analysis, 30(2), 324-339. http://doi.org/10.1108/IJOA-09-2020-2416
Shehu, S. (2024). The Role of the Palm Oil Industry in Malaysia’s Socioeconomic Development: Challenges and Educational Implications. Indonesian Journal of Educational Research and Review, 7(3), 643–655. https://doi.org/10.23887/ijerr.v7i3.84310
Sherf, E. N., Parke, M. R., & Isaakyan, S. (2021). Distinguishing voice and silence at work: Unique relationships with perceived impact, psychological safety, and burnout. Academy of Management Journal, 64(1), 114-148. https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2018.1428
Specchia, M. L., Cozzolino, M. R., Carini, E., Di Pilla, A., Galletti, C., Ricciardi, W., & Damiani, G. (2021). Leadership styles and nurses’ job satisfaction. Results of a systematic review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(4) 1–15). https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18041552
Su Yee, L., Bahru, J., & Siti Suraya Abd Razak, M. (2018). Employee Voice and the Communication of Dissent in an Organisational Setting in Malaysia: A Case Study. LSP International Journal, 5(1), 23–47.
Super, D. E. (1980). A life-span, life-space approach to career development. Journal of vocational behavior, 16(3), 282-298. https://doi.org/10.1016/0001-8791(80)90056-1
Timperley, J. H., Pett, B. L., Geninyan, B., Saputra, A., Vincent, A., Weah, R., ... & Pashkevich, M. D. (2025). Traditional and industrial approaches to oil palm cultivation alter the biodiversity of ground-dwelling arthropods in Liberia (West Africa). Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 387, 109626. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2025.109626
Touni, M. I. (2023). The Relationship between Career Development and Organizational Commitment among Faculty of Nursing Teaching Staff. Journal of Social Studies, 29(4), 88–102. https://doi.org/10.20428/jss.v29i4.2240
TPOLS. (2022). Creeping in Silence: Occupational Health and Safety in Palm Oil Plantation | Palm Oil Labour Network. https://palmoillabour.network/creeping-in-silence-occupational-health-and-safety-in-palm-oil-plantation.
Van Dyne, L., Ang, S., & Botero, I. C. (2003). Conceptualizing employee silence and employee voice as multidimensional constructs. Journal of management studies, 40(6), 1359-1392. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-6486.00384
Wang, Y. De, & Hsieh, H. H. (2014). Employees’ reactions to psychological contract breach: A moderated mediation analysis. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 85(1), 57–66. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2014.04.003
Wen, J., & Ma, R. (2021). Antecedents of Knowledge Hiding and Their Impact on Organizational Performance. Frontiers in Psychology, 12. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.796976
Whiteside, D. B., & Barclay, L. J. (2013). Echoes of Silence: Employee Silence as a Mediator Between Overall Justice and Employee Outcomes. Journal of Business Ethics, 116(2), 251–266. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-012-1467-3
Wilkinson, A., Barry, M., & Morrison, E. (2020). Toward an integration of research on employee voice. Human Resource Management Review, 30(1). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hrmr.2018.12.001
Xu, A. J., Loi, R., & Lam, L. W. (2015). The bad boss takes it all: How abusive supervision and leader-member exchange interact to influence employee silence. Leadership Quarterly, 26(5), 763–774. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.leaqua.2015.03.002
Yasin, H., & Jesevičiūtė-Ufartienė, L. (2023). Employee silence and employee voice as distinct constructs: A systematic literature review. Proceedings of the 13th International Scientific Conference “Business and Management 2023”. Vilnius Gediminas Technical University. https://doi.org/10.3846/bm.2023.1040
Yu, S., Liu, S., & Xu, C. (2023). The effect of job insecurity on employee silence: test an interactive model. Chinese Management Studies, 17(3), 488–509. https://doi.org/10.1108/CMS-07-2021-0301
Zahra Malik, S., Iqbal, M., & Sheikh, L. (2020). Effect of types of employee silence on job satisfaction and subjective well-being. Journal of the Research Society of Pakistan, 57(1), 681-693. https://pu.edu.pk/images/journal/history/PDF-FILES/63_57_1_20.pdf















