Employee Stress and Burnout Prevention
Published: 17/08/2019
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This article targets employers who value their teams and prioritize mental well-being. Burnout poses the greatest threat to productivity, with workplace stress as its main cause. Therefore, our aim is to explore workplace stress and strategies for preventing burnout.
Summer is perhaps the season we most eagerly anticipate. However, many employees in the UK report feeling stressed during this warm time of year. A study by Westfield Health found that nearly half (48%) of employees experience workplace anxiety and stress during the summer months. Alarmingly, 70% of respondents who are working parents indicated that they suffer from stress before or during the summer holidays, which impacts their ability to spend time off work with their family.
Holidays are meant to provide an opportunity to disconnect from work. However, the study revealed that staff spend 17% of their time preoccupied with their jobs. Commenting on the survey, David Capper, the CEO of Westfield Health, stated: “Employees are experiencing a vicious cycle of stress and anxiety that negatively impacts their wellbeing in the lead-up to, during, and following their summer break, leaving them with no time for essential recovery.” In this article, we aim to further explore the issue to uncover its roots and foster a healthier work environment.
These are key ways to minimise stress and reduce the risk of burnout in the workplace:
Become a trusted point of communication so that employees do not hesitate to voice their issues;
Practice early recognition of signs of burnout;
Hold one-on-one meetings with your staff to gauge their stress levels;
Encourage breaks and create designated spaces for them;
Organise weekly meetings to discuss potential anxieties and collaborate on addressing them;
Offer flexible working options.
You cannot begin looking for a solution unless you are aware of a problem. Issues like workaholism, however, are even more challenging to recognise than poor attendance patterns. When you start to notice signs without actively seeking them out, the problem has likely existed for some time. It may only become evident in extreme situations when the employee suffers a breakdown or leaves abruptly. However, if you know where to look, you can identify the red flags before they cause any damage.
There are six key signs of workaholism:
Their time and relationships with others are compromised;
They check and respond to messages outside of working hours, possibly even in the middle of the night;
They exhibit noticeable signs of inadequate sleep;
They frequently work late or bring work home;
They persist in working and checking messages during holidays;
They discuss nothing but work.
In a similar vein to absenteeism, workaholism requires prompt action. However, another characteristic shared by both extremes is that the signature behaviours do not always indicate a problem. There is a strong likelihood that you have engaged in some of these behaviors yourself.
The distinction between workaholism and merely going the extra mile lies in frequency. Occasionally working overtime or being particularly invested in a complex project with tight deadlines is inevitable. However, if you notice an employee consistently exhibiting such behaviours, then there’s a problem.
However, spotting a pattern isn’t straightforward. No employer has the time to focus on each employee individually, particularly in larger companies. Nonetheless, this does not excuse them from being uninformed. Instead, they should implement software that tracks their employees’ working hours and time off. Often, such solutions can generate detailed graphical reports with just a few clicks. They present data visually and allow comparisons among employees or across different time periods. In this way, any potential patterns become apparent.
Furthermore, such software offers additional benefits to the company. For example, tracking the time needed for staff to complete specific tasks can optimise processes and enhance workforce utilisation. Being aware of time spent can lead to more accurate estimates and reduce overservicing when managing client work. A holiday management system, in turn, helps prevent understaffing during holiday periods. It also streamlines the process for staff when booking time off. Since this system is centralised and visible to all, it enables the rest of the team to plan their time and workload more effectively.
Let’s say you’ve done your due diligence and discovered that one or more of your employees are pushing themselves beyond their mental health limits. Naturally, you cannot leave this issue unaddressed. Confronting them is also unlikely to yield the desired outcome. Simply put, you will likely increase their stress if you openly call them out. The good news is that there are alternative, more subtle ways to address the issue without causing further distress to your staff. These are the methods we will discuss next.
The most effective way to manage stress is to make every effort to prevent it. Here are some suggestions:
Foster an open culture where employees feel comfortable sharing their feelings. This strategy can help managers identify problems early and prevent situations that may lead to employee burnout.
Encourage flexible working practices, such as flexible hours and remote work. This approach can be particularly beneficial for working parents who may encounter childcare challenges during the holidays.
Organise a weekly meeting at the beginning of each week to discuss current and upcoming projects, ensuring that the entire team stays informed. These meetings also serve as opportunities for employees to raise any questions or concerns they may have.
Schedule regular one-on-one meetings with each staff member, as they may lack the confidence to voice their queries in a team setting. If they encounter an issue, ensure you present a constructive plan of action regarding how you intend to help resolve it – striving to do so in a timely manner.
Encourage taking regular breaks throughout the day, especially during lunch, and if your team is using computers all day. Ensure there is a designated space within your office where employees can step away from their work for a bit.
One key reason employees feel stressed during their holidays or hesitate to take time off is the fear of falling behind in their work. Additionally, they may worry that their absence will inconvenience the rest of the team. Ultimately, this anxiety stems from uncertainty about whether their time off will affect the business and their performance. The best solution is to cultivate an office environment with smooth communication, allowing teams to continue working efficiently even when one or two members are absent. It may sound complicated, but it is actually quite attainable. Just organise your company's workflows by utilizing workflow management software.
When integrated with a holiday management system, it allows your employees to customise their workflows in advance according to others' annual leave. Furthermore, such software can identify automation opportunities to further optimise workflows. It enhances their efficiency, accuracy, and speed of delivery. The visibility of company-wide workflows, along with the assurance that short-term absences can be managed by automated processes, should alleviate any anxiety from your staff and enable them to enjoy their well-deserved rest.
Time off work allows your staff to kick back and relax, enabling them to return rejuvenated and ready to tackle new challenges. While it may seem complicated, fostering a nurturing work environment where your staff thrive due to a healthy work-life balance is quite simple. All you need are good intentions and the right tools. This way, you can concentrate on building systems and processes that not only ensure your staff's job satisfaction but also help you identify potential issues promptly. All that’s left is to nip them in the bud before they escalate into more significant problems.
Timesheet Portal is a unique platform that automates numerous manual, time-consuming tasks, including time tracking, invoicing, and expense management. By automating these processes, you can save both time and money. The software's features can help maintain low stress levels in your workplace during the summer months and beyond. For example:
Flexitime management eliminates the hassle of tracking how many extra hours your employees work;
Absenteeism management enables you to record and approve your employees’ absences, helping you identify potential areas of concern and take action before they escalate into larger issues;
Time-off bookings enable you to manage time-off requests centrally, ensuring you don’t approve too many requests at once, which could leave you with a minimal workforce;
Contractor self-billing, available in the Recruitment Edition, saves time for contractors and back-office staff by allowing you to automatically generate self-billing invoices for contractors to send to your agency for payment.
While regularly taking time off work is essential for high performance and outstanding results, many employees hesitate to take vacations. Furthermore, even when they do, many find themselves unable to relax due to work-related stress. Workaholism, even in its mildest forms, is a leading cause of burnout. As an employer, you are responsible for your staff’s mental well-being, which includes ensuring they take time off to recharge their batteries.
Patterns of workaholism often arise from the office environment, whether it be due to peer pressure, high expectations, unrealistic deadlines, or other human-related factors. From recognizing unhealthy behaviours to preventing them, the most effective solution is through digital transformation. By incorporating specific digital tools into your strategy, you can significantly create a healthier work environment by streamlining communication, enhancing flexibility, and improving team collaboration.
At Timesheet Portal, we prioritise our staff's well-being. Allow us to care for yours as well.