Remote work is good for employers and employees

Remote work is good for employers and employees

Among those who work from home part of the time, it decreased from 27% to 25%. Among those who do not work from home, it decreased from 30% to 26%. On average, remote workers work an extra 26 hours more every month since the pandemic. In this post we’ll look at some surprising statistics on remote work burnout, and the myriad of reasons contributing to this silent problem. Compassion fatigue and coping with secondary trauma lead to a lifetime burnout rate as high as 75% for social workers. 22% of remote workers indicated “unplugging” from work was a struggle.

Those who worked from home a portion of the week were more likely to feel left out or mistreated. Complaining at work was negatively related to teleworkers’ commitment and satisfaction. Employee survey comments around burnout doubled from March 2020 (pre-lockdown) to April 2020 , increasing from 2.7% to 5.4%. 2020 will be remembered for a lot of things when it’s all over, but perhaps the biggest is COVID-19 and, for many,The Year of Remote Work. None of these issues are going to get better on their own—at least not anytime soon.

How to Avoid Remote Work Stress & Burnout

With the home office now always accessible, many remote workers suffer from an “always on” mindset when it comes to work. The boundary between when work stops and your personal life begins is often blurred. Perpetuating the problem is a prevalent culture where managers often message remote employees even during off hours via email and text. Burnout seems to be prevalent amongst remote workers, especially managers. In a survey of 350 remote managers, 63% of respondents said they had experienced burnout or mental health issues . Approximately 69% of remote employees say they’ve experienced at least some symptoms of remote work burnout.

The pandemic actually saw people taking less time off, with 59% of people taking less vacation days over lockdown. The biggest driver of burnout at 31% was lack of recognition or support from leadership, highlighting again the importance of communication with remote workers. According to a https://remotemode.net/ study, employees who regularly work 12-hour shifts have a 37% increased risk of burnout. In a study, 39.8% of emergency physicians reported high levels of burnout. UK employees’ reports of burnout have skyrocketed to record levels in the past year, and increased by 48% to record levels.

Effective Steps To Prevent Remote Work Burnout

While some companies have opted to return to the office or adopted a hybrid approach, many have seen the huge benefits of remote working and are sticking with it for the foreseeable future. They’ve recognized how much employees appreciate the flexibility of remote work, and they’re doing their best to enable their team members. Burnout has been on the rise, even before the widespread adoption of remote work. A 2018 survey by Deloitte found that 77% of workers experienced burnout.

• 41% of remote workers report high stress levels, compared to just 25% of office workers, according to a UN Report.
• U.S. businesses lose an estimated $300 billion annually due to burnout and related issues such as high turnover.
• Just make sure that you stick to your break schedule as closely as possible.
• Most employers would be happy to hear that they won’t be taking sick days as often when an employee works from home.

As the perks of working from home feel like they’re fading and fatigue is setting in, we are likely headed for a tipping point. Leaders can learn how to guide their people through this crisis and sustain their culture — or let the burnout dam break, dragging down engagement and performance with it. For employers, it might seem like there’s not much you can do for employees stressed out by the pandemic beyond providing a steady remote working fatigue paycheck, benefits and an employee assistance program. The balancing act for managers trying to figure out how to lead their team through the pandemic lies in focusing on performance outcomes while supporting workers’ engagement and wellbeing. The percentage of full-time employees experience burnout at work always or very often has increase among those who work fully from home, from 18% pre-COVID-19 to 29% during COVID-19.

Latest Employee Burnout Statistics

In a heightened state of stress, our brains switch to ‘survival mode’, impairing inspiration and a desire to work. 4 out of 10 people who worked 50+ hours didn’t have a burnout program in their companies . A high rate of burnout was reported in mid-level incomes with 44% in the $30,000 to $60,000 bracket. The lowest rate of burnout was 38% in the $100,000 and above bracket . Millennials (59%), Gen Z (58%), and Gen X (54%) shared similar burnout rates, whereas Baby Boomers (31%) had significantly lower rates .

This intensified pace of work due to ICT use has been found to lead to greater employee stress and burnout. Liking your co-workers was positively linked to teleworkers’ informal communication satisfaction, as well as their organizational commitment and job satisfaction. This aligns with DigitalOcean’s findings that tech pros don’t feel in sync with a company’s culture when working from home. This isn’t a problem for everyone, but a substantial percent of remote workers struggle with it. 45% of workers said they were burned out” after working from home due to a lack of work-life balance. This suggests burnout is a growing threat to the productivity and engagement of today’s workforce.

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59% of American workers are experiencing at least moderate levels of burnout. According to Gallup, burned-out employees are 2.6x as likely to be actively seeking a different job. And even if they stay, they typically have 13% lower confidence in their performance and are half as likely to discuss how to approach performance goals with their manager.