Employee burnout

The modern workplace can be a pressured and tense environment. While offering working from home or flexible hours may work to relieve this stress for some, many employees are required to be in the office full time. 76% of employees report moderate-to-high or high levels of stress, and a quarter of workers experienced burnout symptoms, and this is continuing to grow due to the economic instability many have felt with the cost of living crisis. It can feel overwhelming for HR and managers to navigate employee burnout and even harder to combat, which is why we have put together some ideas to help keep burnout at bay. 

Sitting for long periods of time can affect the body and mind, often without us realising, and according to Banner, the average office worker will sit at their desk for over 1,300 hours per year, and can increase the risk of both mental and physical ill health. If your staff are not taking regular screen breaks at work their efficiency could plateau – lost in the stresses of projects & deadlines and straining their eyes at computers. Encourage your staff to get up and move around regularly to help reset and rest their minds and eyes. Sometimes it’s an important part of a process to step away from a task, take a deep breath and start again with a renewed plan of action.

It’s also beneficial to suggest desk yoga. Back and joint pain can be common amongst people who are sitting at their desk all day, and making sure your team is taking time to move their bodies and stretch can help combat any aches and pains, whilst also offering a short but well earned break from their work.

Offering a strong employee assistance programme (EAP) can provide help at the point it is most needed. Employees access help and advice from mental health professionals, legal expertise and financial aid, and minimise the pressures and distress of maintaining their work-life balance. 

When home and personal life stresses start to feed into work stress, this can be the catalyst for burnout and breaking points for employees. Encouraging your team to take advantage of EAPs and external assistance can offer an opportunity for impartial advice that may be more appealing than speaking to colleagues about sensitive and private matters. In other cases, a friendly face might be just what is needed. It is worth considering an “open door” policy or setting aside a few hours for employees to speak about their worries, expectations and concerns. They say a problem shared is a problem halved, and a new perspective might be just the thing to solve your employees problems. 

Implementing Reward and Recognition schemes can also help reduce employees losing momentum and motivation with their work. Who doesn’t like being congratulated on a job well done! Incentivising your staff with monetary rewards or offering peer to peer recognition will encourage staff to sing each other’s praises, and strive to work harder for the acknowledgement they will deserve. Along with recognition, make sure they are able to offer feedback to the wider  management team. If employees feel listened to and their thoughts and ideas are acknowledged and implemented, the more pride they will have in their work; knowing that a part of the systems have been influenced by their input. Open and honest communication will create a healthy and productive environment for all members of the team, no matter where they fit within the business.  

For more information on how to grow your employee’s satisfaction, request a free demo today.