How can HR managers reduce employee burnout? That’s a pressing question that needs an urgent answer. In recent times, the increase in employee burnout has become a major concern in the corporate world. Unfortunately, many employers do little when it comes to helping their staff manage stress. But what is at the heart of employee burnout?
What is Employee Burnout?
According to the Mayo Clinic, employee burnout is a state of physical or emotional exhaustion that also involves a sense of reduced accomplishment and loss of personal identity.
According to Deloitte’s 2021 marketplace survey of 1,000 full-time workers, 77% of the respondents admitted to having experienced burnout at their workplace. 99% emphasized how unmanageable stress and frustration negatively influence their work quality, and 83% stressed the negative effects of burnout on personal relationships.
Even those who genuinely have passion for their job acknowledge that they feel stressed every now and then.
These statistics show how much burnout affects employees and their performance levels. This noticeable rise in global employee burnout in various companies has kept HR managers on their toes.
Based on the same survey, here are the main causes of burnouts at various companies:
- Lack of support or recognition from leadership (31%)
- Unrealistic deadlines or results expectations (30%)
- Consistently working long hours or on weekends (29%)
Every HR manager must recognize their responsibilities to their workers in reducing burnout at work.
One of the best ways to make this happen is through HR tech. Read on for researched and well-detailed information on how HR tech can reduce employee burnout and improve productivity.
How HR Tech Can Reduce Employee Burnout
Five different ways HR tech can reduce burnout in the workplace:
- Encourage workers to use their PTO
- Highlight the essence of breaks
- Provide an effective employer assistance program
- Make absence management a top priority
- Recognize and reward employees
- Encourage workers to use their PTO
PTO (Personal Time Off or Paid Time Off) plays a vital role in reducing stress or burnout in your workplace.
For this reason, every HR manager should consistently encourage workers to take this time off from work.
However, organizing employee holidays can be challenging for many reasons, including most employees requesting the same days off. Nonetheless, workers should get some time away from work to relax and partake in other activities that they love.
Technology makes sorting out holidays for each worker easier and more effective. Now, every worker can book a convenient holiday time for themselves and the company without filling out a request form.
- Highlight the essence of breaks
Some workers prefer to complete a job or beat a deadline before taking breaks. This implies that they are busy almost every time and take few (or no) breaks — which does more harm than good. This is why HR managers need to emphasize the importance of breaks to every employee.
Encouraging workers to stay away from work for a few minutes to cool off and relax goes a long way in motivating them and positively influencing productivity.
For example, some modern time tracking software lets HR managers notice those who work tirelessly without taking breaks.
With this knowledge, HR managers can ensure their employees take breaks when due instead of working non-stop.
Studies have shown that breaks can reduce employee burnout and sustain a high level of performance. Individuals who take lunch breaks during work hours are less likely to be exhausted.
The break you give to your employees is an investment in their mental well-being, which will yield rewards. In this case, a well-rested, more dedicated, and highly productive staff that’s not troubled by burnout or mental stress.
- Provide an effective employer assistance program
Creating a working atmosphere that fosters honesty, openness, and transparency is vital. There’s no better way to go about this than providing an Employer Assistance Program.
An effective employer assistance program gives workers access to experts and round-the-clock privileged support throughout the year.
HR managers can also use the employer assistance program’s strategy as a guide when approaching delicate employee issues.
Furthermore, it helps HR managers assist their workforce and promote a positive working atmosphere that reduces the possibility of future employee burnouts.
- Make absence management a top priority.
There is a high possibility that employees experiencing mental stress or burnout will fail to resume work on some days.
There are days when employees feel they are not in the right frame of mind to perform their duties optimally. Once this happens, they deem it fit to stay away from work leading to a slip in their attendance.
In most cases, this is a pointer that something is off at that moment. However, if chronic absences become regular within your workforce, it may indicate a problem.
Remedy the situation by bringing up a conversation with affected employees to learn the root causes of habitual absences.
Absence management software is useful in identifying patterns of absence and spotting likely issues beforehand. This way, HR managers do not miss out on vital information that can affect productivity at the workplace.
- Recognize and reward employees
According to Achievers.com, lack of appreciation or recognition is one of the reasons there is an increase in employee burnout and, in a few cases, resignation. Employees tend to perform better when they notice their efforts are being rewarded.
Employee appreciation is an effective way to enhance worker satisfaction and retention. Monthly social events, free snacks, cash, or gifts play a massive role in motivating workers to give their jobs the best shot.
Indeed, letting employees know that they are valuable to the company can encourage them to bring more to the table.
Further Reading
At KnowledgeCity, we provide a wide variety of high quality and informative courses and video training for employees to help reduce employee burnout.
Our Finding Work-Life Balance course, The Art of Motivation course, and many others are valuable resources for every experienced HR manager.
Improve the level of productivity of your employees. Click here to download our free exclusive soft skills training ebook on how to equip your employees for excellence now!
