The Workplace Wellbeing Crisis & What To Do About It

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again, the fabric of work is undeniably changing. Hybrid working models, increased digital connectivity and evolving economic pressures are reshaping our professional lives at an unprecedented pace. Yet, amidst this transformation, a stark reality persists: the modern UK workplace is grappling with a profound wellbeing crisis.

This isn’t merely about employees having a bad day; it’s a systemic issue impacting individuals, teams and, ultimately, the bottom line. For larger businesses this is a challenge for in-house HR teams but for many SMEs, understanding the depth of this crisis and implementing strategic, people-first solutions becomes the responsibility of the business owner, and it’s no longer optional – it’s critical for sustainable success.

Looking into the current state of workplace wellbeing, let’s explore the underlying causes of rising burnout and consider some actionable strategies, informed by recent research and expert insights, to build healthier, more resilient organisations in the future of work.

The Scale of the Wellbeing Emergency

Recent data paints a concerning picture. Globally, life satisfaction among workers has fallen for the second consecutive year in 2024, with only 33% of employees describing themselves as thriving. This decline is mirrored by a dip in global employee engagement, which fell to 21% in 2024, marking the first decrease in four years. This isn’t just a productivity issue; it’s a life satisfaction emergency and as hyperbolic as that may sound, terms like crisis and emergency are not being bandied about lightly.

The most striking symptom of this crisis is the alarming rise in burnout. Mentions of “burnout” on the anonymous employer review site Glassdoor increased by 32% year over year as of Q1 2025, standing 50% higher than pre-pandemic levels and reaching their highest rate in nearly a decade. This “slow-burn problem” as the site’s Lead Economist Daniel Zhao called it, can contaminate an employee’s entire experience, even impacting those otherwise happy with their workplace.

Crucially, this exhaustion is hitting younger generations harder and earlier. While previous generations might have faced their toughest challenges later in their careers, one in four Americans report hitting peak burnout before turning 30 and in this respect where the US leads, the UK follows. Data specific to the UK workforce shows that 18-24 year olds are the age group with the highest levels of stress and are most likely to need time off, often linked to unpaid overtime and additional hours driven by the cost of living crisis.

The consequences are far-reaching and costly. Disengagement alone cost the global economy an estimated $438 billion in lost productivity last year. For the UK economy, work-related mental health issues now cost a staggering £57.4 billion each year, almost double what it was pre-pandemic.

So what does this mean for businesses?

• Higher staff turnover: Employees experiencing high anxiety or burnout are more likely to disengage and leave.
• Declining morale: A stressed workforce leads to reduced team cohesion and weaker collaboration.
• Reduced productivity: Stress impacts the ability to make sound decisions and contribute effectively. Over a fifth of UK workers reported their productivity was impacted by high stress, yet they didn’t take time off.
• Reputational damage: Organisations failing to address anxiety risk losing top talent, particularly younger workers who prioritise wellbeing.

With 79% of UK workers reporting they felt moderate to high workplace stress levels last year, there’s a growing feeling, particularly among younger generations, that their employers prioritise profit and productivity over wellbeing.

Understanding Burnout

First coined in 1974 by psychologist Herbert Freudenberger, the term burnout means more than just feeling stressed. The World Health Organisation (WHO) recognises it as an “occupational phenomenon” resulting from chronic workplace stress that hasn’t been successfully managed. It’s characterised by three main symptoms:

• Exhaustion: Feeling physically, emotionally, and mentally drained.
• Cynicism and increased mental distance from one’s job: Becoming negative, detached or struggling to find pleasure or motivation in your work.
• Reduced professional efficacy: A lack of belief in your ability to complete tasks effectively, feeling useless or powerless.

These symptoms manifest in various ways: irritability, difficulty concentrating, decreased productivity, absenteeism, physical complaints like headaches or stomach issues, changes in sleep or eating habits, isolation and even fantasising about quitting.

Burnout doesn’t happen overnight; it often develops through stages. It can start with enthusiasm (the ‘honeymoon’ stage) and gradually move through periods of recognising stress symptoms until burnout becomes a persistent state. Early signs can be subtle, like feeling exhausted despite getting sleep or increased mental distance from work.

Experts also identify different types of burnout:

• Overload Burnout: Driven by an unsustainable work pace and heavy workload.
• Under-challenged Burnout: Stemming from a lack of stimulating or engaging work.
• Neglect Burnout: Arising from feeling helpless, lacking agency, or overwhelmed by complexity.

Recognising these signs and stages is crucial for intervention, both individually and organisationally.

Assessing the Root Causes

While individual personality traits or lifestyle factors can play a role, burnout is fundamentally a workplace phenomenon. Addressing it requires tackling the organisational risk factors. Key drivers of burnout include:

• Heavy Workloads and Long Hours: Being asked to “do more with less” without an end in sight is a classic recipe for burnout. 64% of UK workers feel more overwhelmed than ever and 56% of 25-34 year olds cited increased workloads as a root cause.
• Lack of Control: Not having a say in how you do your job, your schedule, assignments or access to resources contributes significantly.
• Unclear Expectations: Uncertainty about responsibilities or how performance is measured makes it difficult to feel effective.
• Inefficient Work Processes: The constant churn of low-impact tasks like endless emails, meetings and resource tracking feels busy but is ultimately unfulfilling and draining. UK workers waste an average of 9 hours a week tracking down information, and nearly half their week (48%) on “busy work”. This time sapping activity, sometimes referred to as pseudowork, stifles creativity and innovation whilst inviting machines to take our jobs. After all if so much of these roles can be easily automated why pay workers at all?
• Lack of Support and Community: Feeling isolated or not having a psychologically safe environment to share concerns makes stress harder to manage. A third of UK managers feel “out of their depth” dealing with staff mental health, and 74% are concerned about team mental health. Only 60% of UK workers felt comfortable raising concerns about high pressure to their manager, with this figure dropping significantly for younger workers.
• Insufficient Recognition: Feeling undervalued, resented or fatigued due to a lack of appreciation for efforts is a recurring theme.
• Erosion of Trust and Mismatched Values: Paying lip service to wellbeing as a value simply reinforces the impression that employers prioritise profit over people, which in turn undermines safety and respect. This misalignment can make work feel draining and is a top reason people want to leave their jobs and feel no company loyalty.
• Blurred Boundaries and Work-Life Balance Struggles: Work bleeding into personal time, especially with remote work, makes it hard to switch off. Two thirds of Gen Z employees in the UK reported feeling unable to switch off from work and this difficulty in balancing personal and professional responsibilities is a key cause of anxiety and absenteeism. Many employees take ‘sickies’ due to personal obligations, rather than illness.

Addressing these root causes, rather than just the symptoms, needs to form the basis of any effective wellbeing strategy.

Fixing the Crisis: Strategies for Organisations

While ultimately systemic change is needed, individuals can still take proactive steps to manage their stress levels and build personal resilience. For business owners and management teams, encouraging and supporting the individual efforts of staff is vital. Wellbeing needs to transition from being seen as a perk to being a core business strategy.

Some practical key organisational strategies to consider implementing include:

• Reassess Workloads and Expectations: Leaders must evaluate workloads and set realistic expectations.
  • Empower employees to prioritise and determine what can wait.
  • Consider reasonable adjustments where needed.
  • Actively work to reduce “busy work” and streamline processes that lead to wasted time seeking information or duplicating efforts.
• Build Psychological Safety and Community: Cultivate a culture where employees feel safe to speak out about stress and mental health concerns without fear.
  • Foster trust and belonging through transparency and fairness.
  • Create opportunities for colleagues to build meaningful connections.
• Rethink Flexibility and Time Off: Move beyond expecting employees to take ‘sickies’ for personal needs.
  • Offer genuine flexible work arrangements.
  • Provide realistic time-off policies.
  • Consider dedicated mental health days and don’t stigmatise them. Flexibility enables employees to manage personal obligations and achieve better work-life balance.
• Invest in Meaningful Development: Provide opportunities for real learning and development to counter the demoralising effects of “pseudowork”.
  • High-quality training makes employees feel invigorated, valued, and empowered.
  • Investing in tools and processes that improve collaboration and reduce time wasted on busy work is also key.
  • Training employees to use tools like AI effectively can improve efficiency and collaboration.
  • Providing workshops and training for upskilling your staff enables them to feel better connected to the business and valued as an employee
• Empower and Train Leaders: Equip managers with the skills and training to recognise and support employee mental wellbeing.
  • Manager engagement is crucial for improving employee wellbeing and reversing declining productivity.
  • Encourage leaders to lead with empathy.
  • Many managers feel “out of their depth”, highlighting a clear need for investment in this area.
• Prioritise Meaningful Wellbeing Benefits: Move beyond surface-level perks like gym discounts or free food.
  • Offer meaningful support such as access to mental health resources, trained mental health first aiders onsite and benefits that foster purpose.
  • Purpose-driven benefits, like paid volunteering opportunities, can help reduce stress, strengthen engagement and improve workplace culture.

Addressing the friction between employers and workers requires actively fostering trust and moving away from the perception that profit is prioritised over people. A proactive, holistic approach is necessary, focusing on a true people-first culture, transparent communication and visible wellbeing support. It has to be more than mere words though.

Invest in Thriving

The workplace wellbeing crisis is a clear and present challenge for all UK businesses, whether you want to call it that or not. Its roots are deep and often tied to unsustainable workloads, inefficient processes, a lack of support and the erosion of trust. The costs, both human and financial, are simply too high to ignore.

In the future of work, prioritising mental health, emotional resilience and sustainable workloads is not just an ethical imperative, but a fundamental strategy for long-term business health. By implementing comprehensive, multi-faceted strategies that tackle root causes, empower employees and leaders and embed wellbeing into the core of organisational operations, UK businesses can shift the balance.

This requires a cultural reset, moving from viewing wellbeing as a ‘soft benefit’ to a strategic necessity. When work is not a source of chronic stress, but rather contributes positively to life, individuals can thrive. It’s an investment that yields a healthier, more engaged and ultimately more productive workforce.

If you’re a business owner struggling to adapt to the needs of today’s workforce why not consider specialist outside support? You might also benefit from our guide to mastering stress management as an SME owner. After all a healthy working culture starts from the top.