MyPerfectResume, a leading resource for resume and career advice, surveyed 1,220 U.S.-based workers in March 2024 to investigate the scope and roots of employee burnout. According to the survey, one in five workers think about quitting their job daily. More than half (53%) have had multiple outbursts at work, such as yelling at a colleague, cursing in anger, or storming out of a meeting, during the last six months.
Overall, 88% of workers say they are currently burned out at work. The top causes of burnout that employees cite are too many meetings, too little autonomy, lack of role clarity, being given responsibilities unrelated to their job, and a toxic work environment.
Stressed and overworked, employees are reaching a breaking point and find themselves acting out in the workplace, with 87% saying they’ve had an outburst at work in the last six months. The most frequent outbursts include yelling at a colleague (28%), leaving work early (28%), threatening to quit (27%), cursing in anger (27%), and storming out of a meeting (26%). Approximately nine out of 10 employees say they regret having an outburst at work.
“Burnout has serious consequences for an individual’s well-being, but the side effects can also negatively impact and entire team if that burnout is resulting in unhealthy outbursts, anger, absenteeism, and more,” says Kellie Hanna, CPRW and career expert at MyPerfectResume. “To prevent burnout, employees should try their best to prioritize self-care, set healthy boundaries at work, and where possible, reduce exposure to job-related stressors.”
In addition to outbursts that create a volatile work environment, burnout often leads to other troubling side effects. Approximately 27% of workers think about quitting at least once a week. In total, 47% of workers think about quitting at some point during the week, and 86% think about it at some point during the month. Most (90%) claim that they have “rage applied” to jobs in the last six months. Half of respondents say they experience dread or similar negative emotions before the start of every work week. Another 32% say they experience dread a couple of times per month.
Burnout impacts employees’ physical and mental health and can ultimately undermine their well-being. The most common health-related issues associated with burnout include:
- anxiety and stress (32%);
- frequent headaches (30%);
- chronic muscle pain (25%);
- disturbed sleep (23%);
- lower immunity (23%);
- upset stomach and digestion (22%);
- difficulty concentrating (21%); and
- irritability (21%).
Almost eight in 10 (77%) employees believe feelings about their job negatively impact their personal life, with one in four saying they have experienced depression about their job, 24% saying they have taken a leave of absence due to stress, 20% having called in sick because they couldn’t face going to work, and 20% feeling angry at their co-workers.
Burnout and work-related stress are difficult challenges for employees, and most must turn to mental health professionals or HR to seek solutions. Participants experiencing burnout believe that earning more money (27%), having more role clarity (22%), greater flexibility and autonomy at work (21%), and getting a promotion (21%) would reduce their burnout.
