Employee Stress / Burnout

Futures Quest states “U.S. Companies are increasingly being accused of fostering a work environment which demands dedication, time and energy to the exclusion of an employee’s personal life.” When organizations focus on achieving maximum productivity, oftentimes at the expense of the employee, stress and burnout happens. Yes, there are certain jobs and professions that suffer more from stress and burnout than others. But in the “right” environment, and when I say “right” I mean “wrong," all employees face potential stress and burnout. Are you, (employer or employee) seeing this in your organization?

There are many factors that contribute to creating an environment of stress and burnout. We have all at one time or another found ourselves in an environment where there have been impossible and/or constantly changing requirements or demands made of us. The organization suffers from poor management, the employees from lack of direction, resources or support. When an employee perceives that the organization does not treat them with respect or dignity, demoralization occurs. Stress is a direct result. Stress, followed by burnout. The extinction of motivation or incentive. Yup.

When employees are driven beyond reason, stress and burnout occur.

How does burnout manifest itself?

• Negative attitude
• Persistent irritability
• Frustration
• Indifference to work
• Anger / sarcasm
• Exhaustion
• Increased absenteeism

Let’s talk about the impact stress has on your health. The boss calls you into the office and you know it isn’t going to be a pleasant conversation. Stress sets off an alarm in your brain. Your nervous system goes into overdrive and hormones start pumping. Your pulse and respiration deepen and your muscles tense up (clenched fists, tightened jaw). Your body is reacting to all of this in an effort to remove you from a bad situation. Remember that old “fight or flight” response? That’s what you are experiencing. We are all hardwired for this response. You, me and even Moe. It doesn’t matter who we are, our physiological response is the same. The problem here is that this response isn’t intended to be long term. And unfortunately, it often is. Our bodies are in a constant state of agitation and the impact on our health is easily apparent.

I went out to the CDC website and found a couple of interesting points that I want to share. The Bureau of Labor Statistics indicates that workers who must take time off from work because of stress, anxiety or related disorders, take about 20 days. Direct impact to the bottom line there folks. Also, health care expenditures are nearly 50% greater for workers who report high levels of stress (Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine).

Lifehacker.com recently blogged about “Burnout and How To Deal With It.” All I can say is I love his style. “For the individual it is imperative to think of number 1, if you find yourself in a situation like this, issues (and likely people) way beyond your control have dumped a crap pie in your lap. If at any point you have a CEO or senior manager sit you down to grill you about everything you did wrong in their eyes, leave immediately ….. seriously get out. You’re in a situation where you are sacrificing yourself and things in your life for the sake of an organization that obviously doesn’t care about you, so return the favour and just stop, and take care of yourself and ignore them. Unless you’re a single contractor or the CEO, it’s not your fault.”

Lifehacker sounds like a person that has had first hand experience with burnout.

In closing, stress and burnout = turnover. Those employees just resign and go elsewhere, seeking a better environment. And yes, that impacts the bottom line of any organization.