Preventing Burnout: Essential Strategies for Workplace Wellness
This article was orginally published on 19 August 2022 in HerCanberra
Burnout is the overlooked health epidemic of the pandemic. The cost of burnout is high to individuals, organisations and our communities more broadly. It is estimated that work related absenteeism and presenteeism due to burnout costs the Australian economy upwards of $14.81 billion per year.
There are many factors that are contributing to higher rates of burnout. With more people working remotely, the research included in the Microsoft Work Trend Index indicates they’re also working longer with new ‘work peaks’ observed outside of the traditional core hours of 9-5. In a recent online poll we conducted, 85% of people told us they had experienced burnout in the last twelve months. This is a concerning, yet unsurprising finding. We know that people over the past couple of years have collectively experienced higher levels of uncertainty and stress that creates the perfect conditions for a burnout epidemic.
Why is burnout awareness so important?
As Beyoncé says ‘I’m ‘bout to explode, take off this load’. It seems Queen B is aware of the unpleasant experience that many burnout sufferers can directly relate to. Unfortunately, this level of awareness is not always shared or well understood.
Burnout does not discriminate; it can impact anyone. This is why creating awareness is so essential to the ultimate goal of preventing burnout. Only through creating awareness can burnout prevention really start to take shape and be effective. This is a collective role for our workplace leaders, Government, health sector and individuals to come together to discuss the prevalence and impact of burnout—and most importantly, the steps that will be taken to prevent it.
What is burnout?
Burnout is an occupational syndrome, that results from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed (International Classification of Diseases, World Health Organization, 2019). Traditionally, burnout has been misunderstood as an individual issue that occurs due to a deficiency in individual personality traits and/or coping mechanisms. This unfortunately leaves the problem to individual to address alone. However, we know that burnout is a workplace issue, and that poor workplace practices result in people experiencing burnout. This is an important shift to make and brings us closer to being able to prevent burnout.
What causes burnout?
A major cause is poor workplace processes and practices that occur with repetition over an extended period of time, gradually reducing an individual’s ability to cope. Professor Christina Maslach who is pioneer in her research of burnout has identified six key causes:
Workload
Perceived lack of control
Lack of reward or recognition
Poor relationships
Lack of fairness
Values mismatch
Understanding these causes empowers individuals to know the triggers of burnout, and to care for themselves and others who may be experiencing the same symptoms. Additionally, raising this awareness helps leaders to readily identify these causes so they can take preventative measures to eliminate burnout triggers from their workplace. As we all know, prevention is better than a cure.
So, what can you do to prevent burnout?
If you own a business or lead and manage people, there are some key steps you can take to raise awareness of burnout and prevent it from negatively impacting your people and workplace culture. It is no longer an adequate response as an employer to encourage employees to engage in ‘more self-care’ to reduce the impacts of burnout. The critical first step employers can take is to start to manage burnout as they would other health and safety risks or hazards in the workplace—because burnout is a major health and safety risk. Given its prevalence, it is also essential that employers take the necessary steps to ensure burnout is included as part of the businesses overall risk management approach.
Do you need help firming up your approach to burnout prevention? You can find out more about burnout awareness and prevention in ‘A Guide: Burnout Awareness and Prevention’. This free resource full of practical tips to share in your workplace as you start the process of taking steps to safeguard your organisation and people from the negative effects of burnout.
