Employee burnout is a real issue in today’s working world. Burnout is defined as emotional and physical exhaustion and is one of the leading causes of workplace absences. But this makes you wonder, what are employers doing to prevent employee burnout? Is there even anything they can do?
There are plenty of strategies that are being implemented by employers to keep their employees happy. Here at Adzuna, we’ve taken a look at what is being done currently to prevent employee burnout. With more than 1 in 50 jobs (2.30%) on our website in January 2022 advertising a 4-day working week, it is important to take a look at why this is seeing such an increase and perhaps which other strategies can be implemented.
The 4-day working week
A method you may have seen in the news recently is the 4-day working week. But you may have been left wondering what exactly this involves and which companies have implemented it.
The concept of working a compressed week has been around for a while and involves working 35-40 hours within 4 days instead of 5. However, the new 4-day working week trial is different from this. This trial simply involves working for one less day per week, i.e. if you typically work 40 hours a week, you would work 32 hours a week for the same pay. Sounds great for the employee, doesn’t it? But what’s in it for the employer?
Studies conducted in other countries, such as Iceland, have shown that 4-day work weeks lead to a lower absence rate among employees, due to stress and sick leave. Employees are more likely to feel well-rested and ready to work. This also leads to higher levels of productivity, which is of course what every employer would like to see.
Another benefit is that 63% of businesses have found it easier to attract and retain talent with a 4 day work week. Atom Bank, which is just one of the companies adopting the 4-day work week, has claimed that the move has sparked a 500% surge in job applications and boosted staff morale. Perhaps this will encourage more employers to consider the move to attract more talent as well as discourage those already in the company from leaving.
Who is adopting this 4-day working week? Alongside Atom, some well reported examples include Canon and the Landmark London Hotel. These companies are not alone. We’ve seen the proportion of job ads for 4-day work weeks steadily increasing for the last 9 months, all of which have seen more than 2.0% of UK advertised vacancies accounting for 4-day roles. The increase doesn’t have any sign of stopping and we’re likely to see more employers adopting the 4-day working week going forward.
Happiness officers
Happiness officers are exactly what they sound like: they are employed to make employees happy. Similar to the 4-day working week, the aim of happiness officers is to improve the morale of employees in an attempt to raise performance and motivation levels.
Happiness officers are not the same as HR professionals; they are employed specifically to ensure that employees feel valued, happy, and to give them a voice. They tend to act as the bridge between employees and management, and typically monitor attitudes and experiences, as well as revise company culture where necessary.
Despite the role being relatively new, some well-known companies have employed happiness officers including Google, Airbnb, and Amazon. Ultimately, happiness officers aim to improve the atmosphere within a business and therefore prevent burnout among employees.
Flexible working
If you’ve been searching for a job recently, you’ve probably noticed that ‘flexible working’ is something that pops up frequently in job descriptions. You may have been left wondering exactly what flexible working entails. Typically, employees have a suggested amount of days to be spent in the office, often 2 days, with the rest of the days being able to be worked elsewhere, e.g. at home. This has proven to be a great option following the pandemic as people got used to working from home and their priorities changed. Employees could do the school run and spend more time with their families, without jeopardising their work.
Flexible working also means that workers can skip the early morning commute, saving money and energy, a win-win! Not only can employees work from home regularly, but they can also have flexible start and finish times. Although maybe not as attractive as a 4-day work week, flexible start and finish times are becoming more common in businesses. Many employers offer flexible working hours, with employers having the chance to work 8-4 or 10-6 instead of 9-5, for example. This is a really great option for many employees and a very valuable tool in the attempt to prevent burnout.
Interested in working remotely full time? Check out available vacancies here
Table 1: How the number and percentage of 4-day working weeks has increased since 2017
| Year | Month | Total UK advertised vacancies | Total UK advertised ‘4 day week’ vacancies | % of total UK vacancies advertised as ‘4 day week’ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | January | 1,075,044 | 14,284 | 1.33% |
| February | 1,183,248 | 15,510 | 1.31% | |
| March | 1,182,184 | 16,713 | 1.41% | |
| April | 1,196,975 | 16,890 | 1.41% | |
| May | 1,183,098 | 16,736 | 1.41% | |
| June | 1,235,359 | 16,984 | 1.37% | |
| July | 1,267,301 | 17,165 | 1.35% | |
| August | 1,179,882 | 15,950 | 1.35% | |
| September | 1,119,665 | 15,978 | 1.43% | |
| October | 1,169,742 | 16,328 | 1.40% | |
| November | 1,173,917 | 16,324 | 1.39% | |
| December | 1,052,256 | 14,460 | 1.37% | |
| 2018 | January | 1,133,685 | 15,689 | 1.38% |
| February | 1,135,543 | 15,425 | 1.36% | |
| March | 1,118,378 | 15,512 | 1.39% | |
| April | 1,105,082 | 16,092 | 1.46% | |
| May | 1,188,438 | 17,235 | 1.45% | |
| June | 1,163,483 | 16,690 | 1.43% | |
| July | 1,147,419 | 17,151 | 1.49% | |
| August | 1,182,636 | 18,191 | 1.54% | |
| September | 1,087,715 | 15,969 | 1.47% | |
| October | 1,144,700 | 17,449 | 1.52% | |
| November | 1,107,706 | 16,883 | 1.52% | |
| December | 1,006,929 | 15,206 | 1.51% | |
| 2019 | January | 988,396 | 15,617 | 1.58% |
| February | 1,131,576 | 17,600 | 1.56% | |
| March | 1,018,549 | 15,290 | 1.50% | |
| April | 1,001,276 | 15,370 | 1.54% | |
| May | 1,048,200 | 16,548 | 1.58% | |
| June | 1,046,816 | 16,654 | 1.59% | |
| July | 1,095,008 | 17,164 | 1.57% | |
| August | 959,900 | 15,137 | 1.58% | |
| September | 971,259 | 16,028 | 1.65% | |
| October | 1,048,659 | 18,890 | 1.80% | |
| November | 1,007,655 | 17,473 | 1.73% | |
| 2020 | January | 867,135 | 14,753 | 1.70% |
| February | 936,198 | 15,754 | 1.68% | |
| March | 854,676 | 13,999 | 1.64% | |
| April | 493,248 | 7,074 | 1.43% | |
| May | 369,000 | 5,179 | 1.40% | |
| June | 405,469 | 5,902 | 1.46% | |
| July | 428,934 | 6,612 | 1.54% | |
| August | 539,253 | 9,119 | 1.69% | |
| September | 548,765 | 9,658 | 1.76% | |
| October | 642,558 | 11,639 | 1.81% | |
| November | 694,399 | 13,813 | 1.99% | |
| December | 686,340 | 12,881 | 1.88% | |
| 2021 | January | 666,427 | 12,639 | 1.90% |
| February | 776,145 | 13,646 | 1.76% | |
| March | 857,077 | 15,549 | 1.81% | |
| April | 927,421 | 18,163 | 1.96% | |
| May | 1,073,861 | 22,431 | 2.09% | |
| June | 1,195,466 | 26,774 | 2.24% | |
| July | 1,173,507 | 27,856 | 2.37% | |
| August | 1,188,019 | 28,506 | 2.40% | |
| September | 1,194,302 | 28,395 | 2.38% | |
| October | 1,308,187 | 31,482 | 2.41% | |
| November | 1,343,465 | 32,598 | 2.43% | |
| December | 1,240,580 | 29,422 | 2.37% | |
| 2022 | January | 1,165,099 | 26,759 | 2.30% |
With burnout being very common among employees today, it’s important that businesses recognise this and take action. It’s great to see large increases in businesses offering 4-day weeks in particular and it will be interesting to review whether this incentive will still be a popular choice beyond the official 6-month trial.
The tactics covered in this article are all great options for employees and employers alike and will hopefully lead to a happier, healthier, and less burned-out workforce.
Read more: Health, wellbeing and WFH allowances: Work perks for 2021
Feeling burned-out in your current role? Check out our website for all of the latest vacancies. Take a look at our ValueMyCV tool to see your market value.