Employee burn out … should we have expected this?

When remote working became the new standard for many, there was a general sense of welcome, some would even say excitement…no more long commutes or depressing supermarket lunch deals….you could go to work in your pyjamas if you wanted to AND put a load of washing on or walk the family dog in the middle of the day. Many were making plans for the money they’d save on not needing to pay for suits and makeup and travelling to work each day.

But months on, and with no sign of remote working ending any time soon for so many, is this general sense of welcome still the case?

From an employers perspective, many organisations were initially concerned about how remote working would affect productivity, anxious that without the watchful eye of leaders and fellow colleagues, attention to detail and performance would drop. Worryingly, there was a significant increase in the use of technology and software tools to monitor staff via time tracking, keyboard strokes and photos taken from their laptops. Organisations like Hubstaff and Sneek reported rapid 4 fold and 5 fold increases in their customer base respectively, in what seems to be clear bids to surreptitiously and openly check on employee productivity. The surge in use of platforms like Zoom, Skype and Microsoft Teams may also be in part, down to leaders scheduling multiple “check in” meetings with their employees to help keep an eye on efficiency and output.

However, in talking to our HR executives around the world, the concerns on maintaining productivity and performance appear to be unfounded. In fact there has been a rise in something that hadn’t been anticipated at all…. employee burn out.

What are the symptoms for employee burn out?

“When you’re burned out, your capacity to perform is compromised, and so is your belief in yourself,” according to Monique Valcour, an executive coach and writer for the Harvard Business Review. Some of the immediate signs of employee burnout include:

• Inability to concentrate

• Being easily upset or angered

• Recurring sickness

• Difficulty sleeping

• Feelings of alienation at work

• Cynicism towards other people and their jobs

• Hopelessness

What causes employee burn out?

Pre Covid-19, a Gallup survey found the top reasons for staff burnout included:

1. Unfair treatment at work

2. Unmanageable workload

3. Lack of role clarity

4. Lack of communication and support from their manager

5. Unreasonable time pressure

With Covid-19 forcing many staff to work from home at short notice, employees who have been “left to their own devices” are now reporting significant levels of stress and anxiety. They are working longer hours and struggling to manage an effective work / life balance, now that they have 24/7 access to their phones and laptops. There is more pressure to for everyone to flex to meet the time zones of colleagues abroad, rather than just the far flung employees having to flex to the time zones of the team majority, so more people are working odd hours more often. And aside from the professional concerns around how to effectively network when working remotely, without the camaraderie of the office environment there is for many staff, an elevated sense of loneliness. 

Working at kitchen tables or makeshift desks, employees are starting to feel the health impacts of being away from ergonomically designed work furniture, and appropriate air quality and lighting.  Juggling noise levels with others in the house who are also working, especially when all need to make regular professional calls is causing friction. Being able to work on confidential work projects and discuss them with colleagues, especially when others at home work for competitors, is causing anxiety.

Combine these pressures with the current health news, economic, social and political fluctuations that we are dealing with on an almost daily basis and its no wonder employees are feeling overwhelmed and exhausted with some sources citing worryingly high numbers of burnout being a direct result of the Coronavirus pandemic. 

What can be done to avoid employee burnout?

There are several paths of action that companies are taking to mitigate this, albeit much of the historic advice on preventing and managing burnout simply doesn’t apply right now. Having team meetings outdoors, creating more team social events at unusual destinations, offering vacations away or extending flex and remote working options - these aren’t feasible options for many people.

Some companies are “forcing” employees to take time off to enjoy vacation R&R but in times of lockdown, social distancing, and travel restrictions seeing many people opting to simply vacation at home - is this really effective when the lure of the laptop and cell phone are still so very present? There is much debate on organisations getting tough and forcing people to avoid working for too long - the “virtual commute” concept from Microsoft is one such example. Does it have to get to the point where leaders have to shut down system access before and after a certain time, or block people from team calls if those staff are on “vacation”?

Some companies are establishing “virtual watercooler” team time, “virtual coffee” and “virtual social drinks” sessions, but how much do people actually enjoy and benefit from these forced group “love in’s”? Having a “fun” session with your team online probably isn’t a priority when you’re already feeling too thinly stretched in balancing your professional life and personal demands and responsibilities. Would a weekly, fortnightly or monthly check in with an objective professional coach / counsellor actually be of more benefit?

For sure, anyone who manages a team needs to fully understand employee workloads and help them to be as fair and achievable as possible right now. But they also need to understand the personal pressures on their staff - a nicely balanced workload will only go so far to help the worker who is also responsible for home schooling, housekeeping and carer responsibilities in addition to managing complications for family members with health issues and/or employment and financial disruption.

Certainly this is a test on communication skills and relationships for leaders and their teams. How open and honest can each party be in admitting there is a burnout risk or a burnout problem now, and work together to find a solution to it, rather than viewing burnout as a sign of weakness or incompetence or failure? How much do employees want to disclose about their home circumstances and pressures outside of their work-self, and how much do leaders really want to know, or even care about?

I don’t know that there is any perfect solution to avoiding employee burnout, but I do know that if 2020 has taught us anything it is the importance of preparation. Whilst not considered a mental illness, employee burnout should be treated as a genuine mental health issue, and if allowed to go unchecked and unsupported, burnout can have far reaching consequences. So the companies that are preparing for and actioning against employee burn out right now, will surely be the better for it in the long run.