Burnout is still taboo in many companies — yet its impact is very real
While burnout is not officially recognized as an occupational disease, it is increasingly seen as a serious workplace-related condition. That lack of formal status makes it harder to prevent and treat — even though the consequences for affected employees, their teams, and the business can be severe.
If you're in HR or management, it’s essential to understand what burnout is, learn how to spot the early signs, and implement the right policies to protect your teams.
Here’s how.
What is burnout, really?
You can’t prevent something you don’t understand — so let’s start with a definition, key stats, and a look at what causes burnout in the first place.
The definition of professional burnout
The term burnout was first used in 1974. In 1988, Wilmar Schaufeli and Dirk Enzmann described it as:
“a state of physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion resulting from prolonged exposure to emotionally demanding work situations.”
More recently, researcher Christina Maslach identified three core dimensions of burnout:
- Emotional and physical exhaustion (feeling constantly overwhelmed)
- Depersonalization or cynicism (distancing oneself from work or others)
- Reduced personal efficacy (feeling less productive and less confident)
Common causes include:
- Heavy workloads
- Lack of recognition or autonomy
- Value conflicts
- Lack of meaning or purpose
These are known as psychosocial risk factors (PSRs) — and it’s their duration and persistence over time that lead to eventual burnout.
A growing problem
The number of studies on burnout is rising — and so are the warning signs.
- In 2022, research from Empreinte Humaine found that 36% of employees felt they needed psychological support due to depression.
- According to France’s public health institute, 12% of the workforce is at risk of burnout.
- Cases of burnout and depression have increased sixfold between 2017 and 2022.
This is not just a personal issue — it’s a public health and organizational one. Burnout causes:
- Direct costs for the healthcare system
- Indirect costs for companies: absenteeism, lower productivity, reputational damage
We can no longer afford to ignore it.
What causes burnout?
Burnout doesn’t happen overnight. It’s the result of chronic workplace stress — often combined with personal vulnerability.
Common workplace causes
- Excessive workload: constant pressure, tight deadlines, and long hours make it hard to recharge.
- Lack of autonomy: employees who can’t make decisions about their own work often feel powerless and frustrated.
- Lack of recognition: working hard without feedback or appreciation leads to demotivation and emotional fatigue.
- Toxic work environments: tension, criticism, and lack of support can create isolation and erode mental health.
These work-related risks may be compounded by personal factors like:
- Grief or trauma
- Existing mental health conditions
- Isolation or lack of social support
- Complex family situations
Without a healthy workplace and proper medical support, the risk of burnout grows significantly.
How to spot the early signs in your team
You’re not expected to be a therapist — but knowing how to identify the signs is key to prevention.
The problem? Burnout develops gradually and often silently. But there are warning signs you can watch for.
Individual symptoms
Ask yourself:
- Chronic fatigue or sleep issues — Do they often mention being exhausted? Trouble sleeping? Do they arrive visibly drained?
- Difficulty concentrating — Do they seem confused, distracted, or mentally foggy?
- Irritability or mood swings — Are they more reactive than usual? Do they seem emotionally unstable or withdrawn?
- Loss of motivation — Are they disengaged or showing up late? Are breaks getting longer, or sick days increasing?
- Decline in performance— Are they making more mistakes? Struggling to prioritize? Lacking confidence?
- Physical symptoms — Headaches, back pain, frequent tension — are these becoming common complaints?
- Work obsession — Are they unable to disconnect in the evenings or on weekends?
These signals may not always mean burnout — but if they persist and accumulate over time, it’s cause for concern.
As Clémence Ruelle, occupational psychologist at teale, notes:
“What’s worrying is not the symptoms themselves, but their duration, frequency, and accumulation.”
💡 Bonus: Use the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) — a 22-item questionnaire — to assess burnout risk more formally.
Organizational-level warning signs
Burnout doesn’t just show up at the individual level. Some collective patterns can also signal psychosocial risk.
Signs fall into two categories:
- Operational signals
- High absenteeism or presenteeism
- Declining quality of work
- Frequent employee conflicts, strikes, or legal disputes
- Rising resignation rates
- Health and safety signals
- Spontaneous visits to occupational health services
- Requests for job adjustments or fitness-for-work assessments
- Workplace accidents or injuries (e.g. musculoskeletal disorders)
Staying attentive to your workforce and overall company dynamics is key to early detection.
The link between mental health and burnout
To understand burnout, you must first understand mental health at work.
The common thread: chronic stress.
In high-pressure environments with limited resources, employees may quickly spiral — physically and mentally.
Here’s what happens:
- Energy depletion
- Sleep disruption
- Lack of motivation and self-worth
- Social withdrawal
- Emotional frustration
Left unaddressed, these symptoms build up — leading to emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion.
But when a company prioritizes mental health, it can help prevent burnout entirely — through:
- Manageable workloads
- Trust-based team culture
- Recognition of employee effort
- Access to psychological support
How to prevent burnout through a workplace mental health strategy
Burnout prevention requires company-wide action — regardless of industry or company size.
Reduce chronic stress
Before asking employees to manage their own stress, work on removing avoidable stressors. This includes:
- Respecting work-life boundaries: reasonable hours, remote work, right to disconnect
- Fostering open communication: transparency reduces misunderstandings and defuses conflict
- Providing adequate resources: time, tools, and people to meet job expectations
- Offering wellness programs: meditation, sport, ergonomics, etc.
- Encouraging team cohesion: effective tools, regular meetings, and team-building initiatives
Offer resources and personalized support
Even in ideal conditions, stress can still happen — especially for anxious individuals or in high-pressure roles.
That’s why it’s critical to offer personal support to each employee.
A solution like teale can help by providing:
- A mobile app with personalized guidance
- Access to one-on-one coaching or therapy
- Programs to help employees manage stress, set boundaries, and improve time management
HR teams benefit too — with access to:
- A dashboard tracking mental health indicators
- Suggested actions and trainings for managers and teams
Topics can include empathetic leadership, conflict management, and resilience training.
Key takeaways: what you need to remember about burnout
- Burnout is a state of emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion caused by prolonged workplace stress.
- Main causes: excessive workload, lack of recognition, toxic work culture
- Warning signs: fatigue, irritability, low motivation, drop in performance, repeated absences
- Prevention: reduce workplace stress, support employees with the right tools and mindset, foster an open, caring culture.
