The physical, mental, and emotional exhaustion caused by workplace stress is an increasingly common phenomenon, exacerbated during the COVID-19 pandemic. The chronic occurrence of burnout among employees has been seen to affect all aspects of work-life and company culture.
A Mental Health America 2020 survey found a 75% burnout rate, with 40% reporting it post-pandemic. Given the new working conditions employees have had to adapt to, it is not surprising that an increasing number of people are feeling the effects of workplace stress.
Employers have also been at a loss for how to deal with burnt-out employees. On the one hand, employee well-being is threatened as they suffer the effects, leading to resignations and increased turnover. On the other hand, it influences their efficiency and productivity in the workplace.
Signs of Burnout
In order to address worker burnout, you need to be able to identify it. It can present itself in many ways, but here are some common signs that are seen in employees experiencing fatigue.
Loss of enthusiasm and motivation
The stress and pressure created from burnout leads to much lower motivation among employees. A general apathy may manifest in that state, which extends to all aspects of the work. Employees may appear less energetic and less driven to achieve goals.
Increased mistakes
Decreased motivation and energy further influence the quality of work employees produce. With lower retention and easily-induced fatigue, more mistakes tend to occur. This is especially noticeable if the employee is otherwise known for their quality of work.
Decreased productivity
Burnout is essentially seen as stemming from workplace stress. The higher levels of anxiety and exhaustion can result in late work and missed deadlines. Increased workplace stress has been directly linked to lower productivity.
Disconnect from the job at hand
A sort of mental distance or disconnect has been seen in burnt-out employees. This creates a divide between the individual and their role as part of an organization. It can also foster increasing feelings of negativity and cynicism towards the workplace and management.
What You Can Do As an Employer
Burnout affects your entire organization as the people that make it up struggle to complete their workloads. While many employers still believe financial motivation is the best way to have happy, productive employees, that is only partially true. While important, beyond a certain point, such incentives have little effect on performance. When you’re dealing with burnout, there are other important steps you can take to help your employees feel and perform better.
Open and improve communication channels
Attending to burnt-out employees and their needs first requires understanding and recognizing them. If employees do not feel they can openly talk about or discuss the issues they are facing, you already have a problem at hand. Create a dialogue and help employees feel comfortable in openly sharing their concerns and struggles.
Communication is important in heading towards a resolution. It also applies to effective communication between senior management and subordinates regarding goals and expectations. The confusion and stress caused by ineffective communication contribute to burnout. Developing reliable communication channels in all aspects can help counter such effects.
Ease work-related stress
Burnout has been traced back to having its root causes in the stress and anxiety caused by various job factors. These can vary for different employees. One major contributing factor to work stress is often the working hours. This can be because a boss or organization does not allow a good work-life balance, or the hours are an additional strain on the nature of the work.
Long hours can also exacerbate employee burnout. Flexible working hours have found advocates among many as a healthier and more productive alternative. These allow employees to create a better balance in their lives, especially if stressors exist due to personal factors. While that may not always be possible, some allowance for such considerations can also be a huge help.
Mold the workplace culture to your employees’ needs
Worker burnout has a significant impact on every team member, from new hires to C-level executives. One employee’s stress and exhaustion can also create problems for others around them. Such incidence is not helped if employees find themselves in a disobliging environment. You cannot help your employees if they feel they are in an environment where their needs are not cared for. Poor workplace culture has been linked to a 157% increase in employee burnout.
So what does a healthy culture look like? Centered around the employee, it should show appreciation for their hard work and commitment. An inclusive and connected culture that helps and supports employees can and does keep burnout at bay. Meaningful work in a supportive culture that builds employees up can make all the difference. At times, the factors leading to employee burnout are not in a company’s control. In these situations, the focus should be on what you can do to ease or counter its effects.
As you see, happy and motivated employees are able to give their best to their work and perform at maximum efficiency. For organizations, both small and large, tending to the needs of their employees, prior and during times that they feel stressed and burned out, is critical to growth and retention. During these days of the Great Resignation, it is more vital than ever.
