Businesses are becoming increasingly aware that exhaustion is a ticking timebomb.
It’s (a week paid leave) a perk many still reeling from the trauma of 2020 can only dream of, but, according to management experts and sociologists, companies are becoming increasingly aware that pandemic-related burnout is a ticking timebomb….
How big a problem is burnout? Really big, says Dane Krambergar, head of client services for workplace wellbeing at Mind. A survey of 40,000 staff across 114 organisations by the mental health charity found the wellbeing of 41% of employees had got worse during the pandemic, while about half of respondents said their work life had interfered with their home life. “There are quite stark statistics that suggest that burnout is a very real risk for many employees in the UK.”
According to the psychotherapist Hilda Burke, the symptoms of burnout include extreme exhaustion, insomnia, crippling self-doubt and extreme despondency – often caused by overwork, and being stressed over an extended period. That is the situation many workers have faced in the past 18 months, says Ann Francke, the CMI chief executive. “This has been a marathon pandemic,” she says. “We’ve all been stretched to the limit and had to adapt constantly – that takes a lot of mental energy.”
“I’ve spoken to many leaders and they all see the wisdom of protecting staff mental health,” she says. “I think the pandemic has shocked us into realising the value of our mental health – this could actually be a silver lining.”
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2021/sep/03/stress-test-burnout-breaks-staff-recover-pandemic