Employee burnout is a real problem—and an increasingly common one. A 2024 survey by SHRM found that 44% of U.S. employees surveyed felt burned out from work.
While burnout is now officially recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO), it’s easy to miss the signs until they negatively impact retention, engagement, and workplace culture.
In this article, we’ll take a close look at burnout: what it looks like, what causes it, and how to prevent it.
What is employee burnout?
“Burn-out is a syndrome conceptualized as resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed. It is characterized by three dimensions:
feelings of energy depletion or exhaustion;
increased mental distance from one’s job, or feelings of negativism or cynicism related to one’s job; and
reduced professional efficacy.
Burn-out refers specifically to phenomena in the occupational context and should not be applied to describe experiences in other areas of life.”
Note the last sentence: While it’s certainly possible for your employees to feel burned out in other aspects of their lives, in terms of a medical diagnosis, burnout is a work problem.
This means it’s also your problem as an employer or manager. A burned-out employee is less productive, less collaborative, less creative—less everything. But knowing the early warning signs can help you prevent it.
Symptoms of employee burnout
To prevent employee burnout, you need to be able to recognize it. Look out for the following symptoms:
Increased absenteeism: An employee’s work attendance suddenly drops, or they stop showing up to work on time.
Disengagement: Employee engagement isn’t a static thing. A once-engaged and creative employee can suddenly become withdrawn, take less initiative, and start making mistakes that seem careless and out of character.
Chronic exhaustion (both emotional and physical): An employee is experiencing physical symptoms of exhaustion (like poor sleep or frequent headaches and illness), or emotional exhaustion (like finding routine work tasks draining).
Cynicism and detachment: An employee seems to have more negative feelings about work, colleagues, or customers, along with a loss of enthusiasm for their work.
Some of these symptoms are easier to spot than others (and for remote employees, they can fly under the radar for much longer). For example, you wouldn’t know your employee is sleeping poorly unless they tell you. That’s why it’s important to:
Ask how your employee is doing during one-on-ones (and really listen to their answer).
Include questions that center around employee well-being in your pulse surveys. If an employee won’t disclose how they’re feeling in person, they might be more comfortable sharing that information anonymously. Any sign that an employee is experiencing burnout should raise a flag to managers that work-related stress may be a growing problem.
What causes employee burnout?
There are many causes of employee burnout, and as a manager, you have the power to influence them all for the better.
Unmanageable workload: On small and understaffed teams, too much to do and not enough hands is an everyday reality—and also a perfect recipe for burnout.
Role ambiguity: If an employee’s role is constantly changing or poorly defined, even the most unflappable team members can suffer. Stress management becomes near-impossible when an employee walks into work each day not knowing what to expect.
Limited feedback: Without praise and recognition, difficult tasks are just that: difficult. People need clear and structured feedback to stay engaged and motivated.
Restricted opportunities for input: The more you tell employees what to do instead of involving them in the decision-making, the more likely they are to burn out (and the more likely you are to be accused of micromanagement). Feeling like “part of” rather than “a by-product of” the process does wonders for fostering a sense of belonging.
Skill misalignment: We all enjoy doing the things we do well. If an employee constantly faces tasks they’re not properly trained for—and worse, can’t access the support they need to get better—the work will start to feel futile.
Employee burnout is seldom caused by one factor. Typically, it’s a combination of several.
An employee who feels overworked, underpaid, unappreciated, and unmoored is much more likely to feel depleted and distanced from their job.
Personal causes of burnout
A positive work-life balance is something we all strive to achieve—but in the end, it’s all just life. Your employees can take their work problems home with them, and they can also bring their “home” problems with them to work.
An employee who constantly worries about financial problems has much less tolerance for normal workplace stressors. Similarly, an employee dealing with family issues won’t have as much patience for ambiguity, limited resources, or unrealistic expectations at work.
These factors can have a significant impact on an employee’s workday. And while you’re not a therapist, you can provide a certain level of emotional support to your team. So how can you prevent employee burnout—and deal effectively with employees seeking help with personal problems?
Five tips for dealing with employee burnout
Being aware of what causes burnout is just one part of the equation—and doesn’t always prevent it outright. If your employee is exhibiting symptoms of burnout, try these tips to help them get back on track:
Take a step back and assess relative workloads. Piling ever-greater workloads onto the broadest shoulders is a great way to fast-track burnout (and is often experienced as unfair treatment, no matter how good your intentions are). Take a few moments and list the “extra” duties each employee does that aren’t included in their official job description. Chances are, there’s an imbalance.
Realign tasks with interests. For example, if you have one employee who enjoys helping people, perhaps you could shift duties so that he spends more time training, mentoring, or working with dissatisfied customers. If you have another employee who loves process improvement, make sure she gets to lead a few projects.
Never sacrifice individual interests in the pursuit of creating “well-rounded” employees. It’s great to help employees gain new skills, but not at the risk of burning them out.Provide more praise and recognition. There’s no such thing as too much gratitude. Saying “thank you” should be a daily occurrence, and taking the time to publicly praise employees for a job well done should be the norm.
Actively seek input and feedback. Ask your team members about what is and isn’t going well. Ask them what, if given the authority, they would change. Make sure every person on your team feels like their ideas, opinions, and input matter.
This is especially important when a particular employee’s level of input drops; that’s a definite warning sign of burnout. Don’t expect employees to re-engage. Rather, make it your mission to re-engage them.Effectively manage employees who seek help with personal problems. Like we said before, life problems often creep into work. If your employee shares that they’re going through a tough time in their personal life, there are ways to help them feel less alone without taking on that burden yourself. Start by saying, “Unfortunately, I’m not sure what you should do, either. But together we can find someone who can help.”
Then determine to what extent your assistance is appropriate. Dispensing relationship advice is a slippery slope. The same is true for childcare, parenting, and other personal problems.
Listen, be empathetic, offer general advice if it feels proper. But don’t hesitate to defer to professionals. If your company insurance includes an Employee Assistance Program, refer the employee to those resources. If not, suggest other ones.
Always remember that, no matter how hard you try, you’re unlikely to be able to solve an employee’s personal problem.
But you can show you care. And you can help put the employee in touch with people better able.
In the process, you’ll help the employee avoid job burnout—and, more importantly, make their life better.
FAQs
How common is employee burnout?
Burnout is widespread. A 2024 SHRM survey found that 44% of U.S. employees surveyed felt burned out from work. Because early signs like disengagement and exhaustion are easy to miss, many managers don’t notice until it affects retention, engagement, and workplace culture.
What is the difference between burnout and stress?
Stress is a reaction to pressure, while burnout develops when chronic workplace stress isn’t successfully managed. The World Health Organization describes burnout as exhaustion, growing cynicism or mental distance from the job, and reduced professional efficacy. It applies specifically to work, not to other areas of life.
How can you tell if a remote employee is burned out?
Look for the same signs as in-office employees: withdrawal, less initiative, missed deadlines, uncharacteristic mistakes, and negativity about work. These can go unnoticed longer remotely, so ask about well-being in one-on-ones and include anonymous well-being questions in pulse surveys, which employees may find easier to answer honestly.
What should a manager do first when an employee shows signs of burnout?
Start by reviewing workloads, since extra duties often pile onto the most capable people. List each employee’s tasks outside their job description to spot imbalances. Then ask for the employee’s input and feedback, and make it your job to re-engage them rather than waiting for them to do it themselves.
How should a manager respond when an employee shares personal problems?
Listen with empathy and say you’ll help them find support, rather than solve the problem yourself. Offer general advice only if it feels appropriate, and defer to professionals. If your company insurance includes an Employee Assistance Program, refer the employee to it. If not, suggest other resources.
