In the UK, stress and anxiety levels in labour forces from the top down are not looking healthy, with one in three bosses on the brink of burnout, according to an article in City AM by Michiel Willems, based on new research by HR tech firm Sage.
Willems writes: “More than a third of UK bosses are on the brink of burnout, while nearly one in five are currently experiencing it because of rising energy prices, rocketing inflation and supply chain delays.”
Rising costs are cited as a cause of burnout by 36% of small-to-medium business owners, alongside long hours (39%) and heavy mental workload (37%), writes Willems, adding: “More than half (54%) say worries about hiring and retaining staff, amid the UK’s crippling skills shortage, is affecting their own mental health and wellbeing.”
Negative impacts
Globally, the situation is serious across knowledge workers, with seven in ten people experiencing burnout or imposter syndrome in the past year, writes Dan Cave in an article for People Management. More than two in five (42%) are experiencing both.
The news comes from a study of more than 10,000 workers as part of Asana’s 2022 Anatomy of Work report. The survey finds that “the root causes of each condition may be related, with millennials and business leaders, separately, at most risk of experiencing both”, Cave explains.
He highlights a few points from the research: “The negative impact that burnout can have on organisational outcomes, with 70% of C-suite leaders saying burnout [has] affected their ability to make decisions. In addition, the findings [show] that anyone at work suffering from burnout is at a higher risk of having low morale (35%), being less engaged (30%), making more mistakes (27%) and leaving the company (25%).”
The research also reveals that “more than half (51%) of workers do not feel comfortable talking to their manager about burnout,” says Cave.
The article includes tips from experts on how to address these crippling workplace issues, including teams being “staffed correctly”, companies creating a “psychologically safe culture, as well as clear work boundaries” and leaders modelling “healthier behaviours”.
Prioritising annual leave
Promoting a healthier workplace culture in the UK is also the theme of an article on the Onrec website by Stuart Gentle, who explains how employers are being urged to “prioritise annual leave and promote healthy working habits to avoid burnout, amidst survey findings that employees feel unable to take time off work”.
According to Gentle, the Just Eat for Business Annual Leave Allowances survey reveals how UK office workers utilise annual leave allowance, how their employer promotes holiday entitlement and how time off and flexible working impacts work-life balance.
He writes: “The survey [finds] that a majority (60%) of employees feel their boss explicitly discourages them from taking time off, while one in ten feel unable to ask for mental health leave. Furthermore, one in five office workers are being prevented from taking time off work due to staff shortages and reduced resources – meaning their requests are regularly denied.”
Burnout is clearly an issue for these workers, with Gentle adding that the survey also finds that “44% of employees report feeling very burnt out, while a third find trying to maintain a healthy work-life balance to be the most stressful aspect of work”.
The future picture
Whether the mass staff losses currently affecting talent retention worldwide are from worker burnout or other factors, the great resignation crisis “will continue apace in the year ahead”, according to a 2022 PwC survey of more than 52,000 workers in 44 countries and territories. Its Global Workforce Hopes and Fears survey reveals that one in five are likely to switch to a new employer in the next 12 months.