What's the Employer's Role in Relieving Stress?

New research from SHRM finds nearly 45 percent of workers are burned out from their jobs. About one-third of employees (33 percent) said their jobs often cause stress. Major stresses include workload, compensation, nature of the job, poor management, and understaffing—a clear example of how work can affect mental health.

Only 40 percent of burned-out workers go beyond expectations in their roles, compared to 56 percent of those who don’t feel used up from their jobs.

It’s difficult for burned-out workers to overcome such feelings, says Daroon Jalil, a senior researcher at SHRM who conducted the study and holds a doctorate in industrial and organizational psychology. She says that’s why it is important to address mental health issues before they become acute. 

There are steps employers can take to improve mental health across the board—starting with acknowledging and changing the cultures that create burnout.

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How SHRM Can Help

SHRM provides resources and strategies to help employers create workplaces that support good mental health for workers, managers, and C-suite leaders.

Mental Health Resource Page
Toolkits, Q&As, articles, and research from SHRM can help employers understand their obligations to accommodate and address their workers' mental health needs.

Meeting Mental Health Needs Across Generations
Five distinct generations share today’s workplace, each with different expectations and preferences for mental health support. Older employees from the Silent Generation, Baby Boomers, and Generation X typically had fewer demands for mental health support when they entered the workforce. Millennials may be more vocal, while Generation Z lacks experience in asking for help with mental health issues.

Mental Health in Your Workplace: From Evaluation to Action
The SHRM Foundation created this field guide to equip workplace leaders with tools to evaluate mental health resources, inform processes for supporting mental health within the organization, and, ultimately, help you develop a strategy that demonstrates improved mental health within your unique workforce.

Here’s How Bad Burnout Has Become at Work
Burnout can have profound effects on employees, including physical and emotional exhaustion, diminished job performance, increased absenteeism, lower job satisfaction, and even long-term health problems such as anxiety and depression.