Constructive voice of skilled migrants: unpacking the roles of high-commitment work practices and organizational justice

Purpose This study examines the constructive voice behavior of skilled migrant employees. Drawing on uncertainty management and organizational justice theories, it investigates the direct effects of high-commitment work practices (HCWPs) and perceived organizational justice, as well as their joint influence on voice behavior. Design/methodology/approach Using a time-lagged survey design, data were collected from 268 skilled migrant workers employed across various sectors in Australia. Ordinary least squares regressions were used to test the proposed relationships between HCWPs, perceived organizational justice, and constructive voice behavior. Findings The results indicate that HCWPs are positively associated with the constructive voice behavior of skilled migrant workers, such as offering ideas and suggestions to improve organizational practices. These findings suggest that HCWPs enable firms to better capitalize on the global expertise and knowledge of their migrant workforce. Perceived organizational justice also shows a positive direct association with constructive voice and further moderates the HCWPs–voice relationship, such that the positive effect of HCWPs on constructive voice is more pronounced when employees perceive high levels of organizational justice. Practical implications The findings offer guidance for organizations seeking to fully leverage the potential of skilled migrant workers by designing supportive HR practices and ensuring a fair organizational environment that encourages constructive voice behavior. Originality/value This study advances human resource management research by offering a differentiated theoretical explanation of skilled migrants' constructive voice. It conceptualizes HCWPs' function as capability-building and uncertainty-reducing infrastructures that create conditions for speaking up, while signaling long-term organizational support. Distinct from these structural effects, perceived organizational justice influences voice behavior by shaping how employees interpret fairness and assess the safety of speaking up within the organization. By disentangling the complementary roles of human resources (HR) practices and fairness perceptions, this research deepens understandings of how organizations can promote skilled migrants' voice behaviors in host-country workplaces.