Worker Voice
ILSI helps employers build genuine worker-voice mechanisms so problems surface early, directly from the workforce, rather than after they escalate.
A grievance mechanism that exists only on paper does not protect anyone. Migrant workers frequently do not use formal grievance channels because they fear retaliation, do not trust confidentiality, or cannot navigate the process in a language they do not speak fluently. ILSI helps employers build worker-voice mechanisms that workers will actually use.
What effective worker voice looks like
- Independent access. A route to raise a concern that does not go solely through the direct supervisor a worker may have a problem with.
- Language accessibility. Materials and channels available in the languages your workforce actually speaks.
- Confidentiality and non-retaliation. A credible guarantee that raising a concern will not affect a worker's job or visa status.
- Visible follow-through. Workers who see concerns acted on are far more likely to raise the next one early, before it becomes serious.
How ILSI can help
Because ILSI members already have access to an independent helpline (see during employment), employers who work with ILSI benefit from an existing, trusted channel their workforce already uses — reducing the need to build trust in a new mechanism from scratch. We can also help you design or audit an in-house grievance system as part of a due diligence review.
To discuss worker-voice mechanisms for your workforce, request a consultation.
Why formal grievance procedures often fail migrant workers specifically
A grievance procedure designed for a domestic workforce frequently assumes things that do not hold for migrant workers: comfort with the local language, familiarity with local labour law, confidence they can find another job if this one ends, and no fear that raising a concern could affect their visa status. Where these assumptions do not hold, formal procedures go unused even when workers have real, serious concerns.
What we look for in a review
When ILSI reviews an employer's worker-voice mechanism, we look specifically at whether migrant workers know the mechanism exists, trust it enough to use it, and can access it in a language and format that works for them — not simply whether a policy document describing a grievance procedure exists on file. This often means talking with workers directly, in their own language, away from supervisors, rather than relying solely on management's account of how the mechanism functions.