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  • Employee burnout has become an increasingly prevalent issue in the workplace, impacting both individuals and businesses. As a business owner, it’s crucial to prioritize the well-being of your employees and create a supportive environment that fosters growth, engagement, and productivity. In addition, as businesses continue to push the boundaries of productivity and efficiency, the toll on employees’ physical and mental well-being has become increasingly apparent.

    Now, more than ever, it’s imperative for business owners to recognize the detrimental impact of burnout and take proactive steps to prevent it. Approximately one million American workers call out sick because of stress every day. Let’s explore strategies to help business owners reduce employee burnout and build a thriving workforce.

    Cultivate A Culture Of Work-Life Balance

    One of the most effective ways to combat employee burnout is by promoting a healthy work-life balance. Encourage your employees to prioritize self-care and personal well-being by providing flexible work arrangements, such as remote work options, flexible hours, or compressed work weeks. Foster a culture where breaks and vacations are encouraged, and lead by example in demonstrating a balanced lifestyle. By respecting their personal lives and allowing them to recharge, you’ll empower your employees to bring their best selves to work.

    Develop Clear Expectations And Realistic Workloads

    Unclear expectations and overwhelming workloads are major contributors to burnout. Clearly define job responsibilities, objectives, and performance expectations to ensure employees have a clear understanding of what is expected from them. Collaborate to set realistic workloads and deadlines and regularly review and adjust them as necessary. Encourage open communication and provide support to employees who feel overwhelmed, allowing for potential workload redistribution or task delegation. Ensuring a manageable workload empowers your employees to perform at their best without feeling overwhelmed.

    Foster A Supportive And Inclusive Work Environment

    A positive work environment plays a significant role in preventing burnout. Cultivate a supportive culture by encouraging collaboration, fostering open communication, and recognizing employee achievements. Create channels for employees to provide feedback and address concerns. Promote diversity and inclusivity by valuing different perspectives and backgrounds. Building a culture of trust, respect, and support establishes a foundation where employees feel valued and motivated, reducing the risk of burnout.

    Invest In Professional Development And Growth Opportunities

    Employee burnout can arise from feeling stagnant and lacking growth opportunities. Demonstrate your commitment to your employees’ professional development by investing in training programs, workshops, and skill-building opportunities. Provide regular performance feedback and create clear pathways for career advancement. Encourage employees to set personal development goals and support them in achieving these goals. By nurturing a growth-oriented environment, you empower employees to unlock their full potential and find fulfillment in their work.

    Implement Employee Wellness Programs

    Prioritizing employee well-being through wellness programs can have a significant impact on reducing burnout. Offer wellness initiatives such as yoga or meditation classes, fitness challenges, or access to counseling services. Promote healthy habits through initiatives such as healthy snacks, ergonomic workstations, or encouraging regular physical activity breaks. By investing in employee wellness, you demonstrate your commitment to their overall health and happiness.

    Protect Your Greatest Asset – Your Employees

    At the end of the day, you want to protect your greatest asset – your employees – from experiencing the debilitating effects of burnout. Fortunately, when you partner with a professional employer organization (PEO) like GMS, you gain access to a comprehensive suite of resources and a team of dedicated experts to support your employees before they reach that breaking point.

    A PEO can provide guidance on implementing strategies for work-life balance, streamlining workload management, fostering a positive work environment, and offering wellness programs such as diabetic management and metabolic wellness. With GMS by your side, you can proactively address burnout, cultivate a culture of well-being, and ensure that your employees thrive personally and professionally. Together, let’s build a resilient workforce equipped to navigate the challenges of today’s economy. Contact us today to learn how you can get started.

  • Going to work shouldn’t feel like, well, going to work.

    Sadly, that’s how most workers feel. A Gallup study found that two-thirds of full-time workers experience burnout on the job. Yet, only 23 percent of companies offer burnout prevention programs, according to a 2017 Statista survey. It’s a huge issue for many companies and a major reason why talented workers leave for better opportunities.

    However, employee burnout doesn’t have to be part of the job. Learning how to spot job burnout and understanding its effects can help employers not only reduce burnout and job stress, but also increase productivity and revenue. We put together some tips to learn more about what job burnout is, how job burnout is affecting your company and ways you can prevent (and even reverse) job burnout at your organization.

    An employee shows signs of job burnout when they are unmotivated, overworked, cynical and frustrated.

    What is job burnout?

    Job burnout is a type of job stress defined by Mayo Clinic as “a state of physical, emotional or mental exhaustion combined with doubts about your competence and the value of your work.” Job burnout symptoms can include lack of motivation, cynicism, frustration, impatience, irritability and even physical pain like headaches and backaches.

    From demanding deadlines to bad bosses, there are many factors that can be attributed to the causes of job burnout. Lack of control, unclear job expectations, dysfunctional workplace dynamics, unreasonable time pressure and work-life imbalance can all cause an employee to experience burnout from work.

    Effects of job burnout

    An overworked, over-stressed and unhappy employee can take a serious toll on any company. Burnout affects every facet of an organization, with decreases seen in production, morale, retention and revenue.

    Quantity and quality of work both suffer when an employee is burned out. Data from The O.C. Tanner Institute’s Health and Wellbeing Study revealed that employees with poor wellbeing, on average, self-reported that they are only working at 64 percent of their maximum output. That’s because employee productivity decreases with a lack of motivation, causing slower work and lower productivity.

    The previously mentioned Gallup survey also found that employees who suffer from burnout are 63 percent more likely to take sick days, as burnout can lead to increased instances of illness. You’ll also start to see increased errors in work, which could be attributed to factors including apathy, lack of communication and/or time constraints.

    You’ve likely heard the saying, “it only takes one bad apple to spoil the bunch,” and the same can be said for a burned-out employee. Employee burnout is highly contagious, as team morale decreases, and workplaces are more susceptible to conflict, ultimately resulting in a toxic work environment.

    Retention rates will suffer with good workers leaving bad situations due to burnout. A study conducted by Kronos and Future Workplace found that burnout is the biggest threat to employee retention, according to 95 percent of human resources leaders.

    Overall, job burnout can cost your organization serious losses in revenue. The American Institute of Stress estimates that job stress can cost U.S. businesses as much as $300 billion annually.

    Job burnout solutions

    You don’t have to—and shouldn’t—accept burnout as part of the job. While job burnout doesn’t just happen overnight, it can creep up slowly if you’re not paying attention to the warning signs. Job burnout can be prevented (and even reversed) by changing how you manage and lead your employees. Follow these five steps to prevent job burnout at your organization.

    Define goals and expectations

    Regular check-ins with employees can increase productivity, lower stress levels and encourage open communication throughout the company. Perhaps that’s why 65 percent of employees wished they received more feedback from their employer, according to a study by employee engagement firm Office Vibe.

    When was the last time you had a check-in with an employee that involved more than just giving project updates? Frequent check-ins and employee reviews can help make sure goals and expectations are clearly defined by providing direction, eliminating guesswork and creating better employee/manager relationships. These check-ins can also help you spot a burned-out employee.

    Should you notice signs of burnout in one of your employees, address the situation head-on by scheduling a one-on-one meeting to determine ways you can work together to reverse the symptoms before they escalate.

    Delegate tasks evenly

    When you’re understaffed, it’s easy to see how employees can become overworked or overwhelmed. Just make sure it’s not one person carrying the entire team. A study by the Families and Work Institute found that almost one in three employees feel overworked or overwhelmed by the amount of work they have to do.

    Overloading employees can cause stress and increase the chance of burnout if the weight of responsibilities becomes too much.

    If your employees are downing in a sea of work, it’s up to management to provide the life rafts—not add stress by upping the workload. To prevent work overload, distribute job responsibilities fairly, monitor scheduling, set reasonable deadlines and arm your employees with the tools and resources needed for them to be successful. Even more than that, create a culture where the word “no” is respected.

    Foster creativity

    On the flipside of being overworked, burnout can also occur when employees are bored or under-stimulated. A Gallup study found that about two-thirds employees are disengaged on the job, which means they are not performing to their full potential.

    Creativity helps maintain mental fitness by keeping the mind sharp and increasing engagement and motivation. Holding brainstorming meetings or inviting employees to participate in decision-making processes can be great ways to keep employees engaged.

    Additionally, sending employees to training courses or conferences can rejuvenate employees, boost productivity and help not just them, but also your company reach its full potential.

    Encourage breaks and vacation time

    Vacations are good for more than fancy drinks with tiny umbrellas in them. A 2015 study by the American Psychological Association found that vacations make for great stress relievers, which can help prevent burnout.

    But don’t think that just because your organization has a vacation policy that workers will actually take advantage of it. Many employees think they can’t take time off over fear of being replaced, they’re burdened by too heavy of a workload or there’s simply no one else who can cover their work while they’re gone. Perhaps that’s why 52 percent of employees left unused vacation time on the table in 2018, collectively throwing away 705 million vacation days, according to the U.S. Travel Association’s Project Time Off.

    Not only do you want to encourage your employees to take time off, you need to make sure they stay off. Discourage the practice of working after hours or answering email while on vacation—and lead by example. Allowing flexible scheduling or remote work options can be another way workers can catch a break from the office bustle.

    Show appreciation

    Saying “please” and “thank you” is more than just polite manners. A study conducted by Clear Review, a performance review software system, found that the top workplace frustration is a lack of appreciation regarding performance and effort, with 40 percent of employees saying that employee recognition isn’t a priority at their company and thus limited their motivation to truly excel.

    Give credit where credit is due by showing your employees their hard work is appreciated. Recognizing accomplishments and top performers can help increase employee engagement. It also provides management with an excellent opportunity to provide feedback and guidance for an employee’s growth and development.

    A few ways you can show your appreciation could be as simple as a round of applause in a meeting or celebratory lunch, presenting an award, or rewarding an employee with a promotion and/or pay raise.

    Ignoring the warning signs of employee burnout and promoting dysfunctional organizational standards can create a serious burnout epidemic for your organization. However, leaders can work to eliminate burnout by being proactive and taking measures listed above. Decreasing job stress and creating work-life balance will help drive your organization’s continued success by reducing burnout and raising engagement, productivity, retention and revenue.

    Contact Group Management Services today to talk with one our experts about job burnout solutions for your organization.

  • 2020 has brought an abundance of challenges to people all over the world. It seems that when we think that things can’t get any worse, we are hit with another obstacle. With all the uncertainty, lost jobs, illness, and lack of toilet paper, it’s easy to say that this year has been anything but a smooth ride. 

    Overall, this year and pandemic has taken a major toll on many people’s mental health and well-being. It is so important now more than ever to be aware of your employee’s health and be sure they are given the necessary resources to live as stress free as possible. 

    An employee relaxing to help support mental health in the workplace. 

    COVID-19’s Impact on Employees’ Mental Health

    The stress of COVID-19 has caused a great amount of fear to more aspects of people’s lives other than just catching the virus. Individuals are losing jobs and becoming financially unstable, graduating college students are being thrown into one of the worst job markets, death rates from the virus are increasing by the day, and people who quarantine are missing social interaction with friends and family. 

    Below is a list of just some of the mental health statistics in America.

    • In late June 2020, 40 percent of adults in the U.S. stated that they have been struggling with mental health issues or substance abuse. (CDC)
    • The rate of moderate to severe anxiety peaked in September of 2020, with over eight in 10 people who took an anxiety screen scoring with moderate to severe symptoms. (Mental Health America)
    • An estimated 26 percent of Americans ages 18 and older – about one in four adults – suffers from a diagnosable mental disorder in a given year. (John Hopkins Medicine)

    What Employers Can Do to Support Employees’ Mental Health

    Many individuals may feel stressed or pressured to go into their work facilities or offices. There are multiple ways for employers to take care of their employees during these difficult times.

    Create a system of support and trust

    Let your employees know that you are there for them and form a sense of trust. One of the issues people face is not knowing where to turn in times of hardship. Being open and transparent with your employees can give them the opportunity to search for help before things become too overwhelming for them.

    Provide your employees with resources

    It is absolutely necessary for all employees to have access to beneficial resources to educate them and help them cope with mental health issues. Some examples of helpful websites are the American Psychological Association, Anxiety and Depression Association of America, and the CDC. These sites all include information on a variety of mental health issues as well as ways to improve symptoms and live a healthier life. Also, your company’s HR departments should consider providing an Employee Assistance Program for all employees, with access to licensed professionals. 

    Create a healthy work environment

    Employees can feel less stressed or anxious at work if the environment is positive. Have casual conversations with them and get to know them on a personal level. Also, have biweekly or monthly check-ins to see how your employees are feeling or if they are having any additional stress in their life. Form a culture that is inviting, happy, and supportive.

    Hold mental health trainings

    The best way to inform all employees to be aware of mental health is having all-office trainings. Educating your company on what mental health is, what the warning signs are, and how to take care of themselves and others can make a huge difference. This can help prevent issues further down the line and reassure others that it is ok to struggle with mental health.

    If you or someone you know is struggling with a mental illness, reach out to your primary care provider. For emergencies, contact the SAMHSA National Help Line at 1-800-662-HELP.