Preventing Employee Burnout
The World Health Organization (WHO) now considers burnout to be a syndrome. In previous editions of the WHO’s International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11), burnout wasn’t considered a serious condition, and its only listed symptom was exhaustion.
The WHO’s decision to upgrade burnout to a syndrome and provide a detailed set of symptoms communicates its serious stance on the dangers of burnout. Additionally, the WHO clarified in a public statement that burnout is an “occupational phenomenon” resulting “from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed.” Additionally, fatigue and exhaustion increase the probability for accidents as supported by OSHA statistics.
What is burnout?
According to the WHO’s ICD-11, doctors can diagnose an employee with burnout if they exhibit the following symptoms:
Exhaustion or energy depletion
Decreased engagement at work, or feelings of negativism or cynicism related to one's job
Reduced productivity or efficacy
For some employees, the negative effects of burnout extend beyond their work life and into their home and social life. Moreover, burnout can increase an employee’s risk for getting sick or developing a chronic condition.
How to Prevent Burnout at Your Organization
Since burnout is the result of prolonged and chronic workplace stress, it’s important to know how to recognize the signs of workplace stress.
While it may not be possible to eliminate job stress altogether for your employees, you can help them learn how to manage it effectively. Common job stressors include a heavy workload, intense pressure to perform at high levels, job insecurity, long work hours, excessive travel, office politics and conflicts with co-workers.
You can implement various activities to help reduce employee stress, which can improve health and morale—and productivity.
Make sure that workloads are appropriate.
Have managers meet regularly with employees to facilitate communication.
Address negative and illegal actions in the workplace immediately. Do not tolerate bullying, discrimination or any other similar behaviors.
Recognize and celebrate employees’ successes. This contributes to morale and decreases stress levels.
Encourage a positive work-life balance.
Promote exercise at your organization, as it’s a proven stress reliever.
Encourage employees to utilize their paid time off.
Incorporate company-sponsored activities to give employees a reason to leave their desks and take a break.
Train managers on how to keep employees engaged and motivated at work, and how to address burnout with employees.
More Practical Procedures
Schedule day (morning) shifts rather than afternoon or night shifts, if possible.
Limit consecutive day shifts to five or six, night shifts to four.
Provide frequent rest breaks. (For many kinds of work, hourly breaks are appropriate. However, more frequent breaks are recommended for highly repetitive or strenuous work.)
Schedule work so that all workers have at least two consecutive rest days, with Saturday or Sunday as one or both of the days off.
Keep schedules regular and predictable.
Alternate weeks of overtime with weeks of normal time.
For More Information
Burnout is a serious syndrome that may be affecting your employees. As such, it’s important that you recognize the signs of burnout and take steps to prevent it at your workplace.
For more information on stress reduction resources for employees, contact Delaney Insurance Agency, Inc. today.
Email: Glenn@ComplianceandSafetyFirst.com
or phone: 909-481-7223 and ask for Glenn
