What is the leading cause of burnout among employees?
Australia is currently seeing a "burnout epidemic" as 80% of employees have admitted to suffering from burnout, with heavy workloads named the leading cause of it.
This is according to the latest Robert Half poll, which surveyed 1,000 full-time office workers to find that:
"Burnout is reaching alarming levels in the Australian workforce," said Nicole Gorton, director at Robert Half, in a statement.
Heavy workload has been cited by 56% of employees as the reason for their burnout, emerging as the top factor impacting employees' current mental health problems. Others said:
"The past year has seen a surge in stress, exhaustion and disengagement among employees. The consequences of companies working with lean teams, the pandemic, economic uncertainty, and lack of job security have all contributed to this burnout epidemic," Gorton said.
Amid alarming levels of burnout, 77% of employees said they approached their manager about the situation, who in turn took steps such as:
On the other hand, 23% of the respondents said they did not inform their manager that they were experiencing burnout.
But ignoring burnout won't make it go away, according to Gorton, who further warned that it could even lead to long-term health problems.
"By speaking up, employees can advocate for themselves and work with their managers to find solutions that address their specific needs and challenges," she said.
Gorton also urged managers to create a supportive and empathetic work environment so employees feel comfortable sharing their concerns.
"Aside from encouraging time off, reshuffling responsibilities and bringing in extra staff to alleviate workload, even if temporary, offering resources like mental health support, wellness programmes and professional development opportunities can empower employees to manage their wellbeing and build resilience," she said.
