Burnout: A major threat to the workforce

Article By : Hailey Lynne McKeefry

Research from Talking Talent has found that pressure and expectations in our fast-paced world is taking a toll on workers. Companies need to address this risk to support their employees' well-being.

Work is called work for a reason. However, the fast-paced and demanding world of work today is taking its toll on employees, new research has found. For supply chain workers, tasked with critical and strategic tasks of the organisation, avoiding burnout is critical.

Today’s workers are more at risk than ever before, with pressure and expectations on the rise, according to new research from Talking Talent, a coaching and consulting company. The research, conducted in the UK, can be applied to organisations generally.

The research found:

• Generally, professionals are feeling worn out by work. In fact, 57% said this was true.
• Parents are more likely to feel fatigued. Feeling worn out rises to 67% for working parents.
• Leadership is particularly taxing. Seventy per cent senior managers who feel work fatigue and 58% of senior managers report that they often lose focus at work;
• And three-quarters (75%) of professionals aged 25 to 34 already feel worn out by work.

 

Figure 1: Download the full infographic from Talking Talent here.
 

In short, the threat of burnout is real and working parents, senior managers, and recent graduates are most likely to be at risk, the research found. Almost half of workers say that their employers fail to support them in this area. Talking Talent coach director, Rob Bravo explained: "Organisations need to take action to support the wellbeing of their people. The challenge of helping employees understand how to manage their own wellbeing is part of protecting an organisation’s greatest asset–its people. If left unexamined, wellbeing issues will reverse positive trends in diversity and inclusion aimed at improving organisational performance."