At work… is everyone tired?

An Accountemps survey shows that almost all managers in Canada consider their employees to be “exhausted” to a certain degree.

Always being tired… is tiring! And unfortunately, a recent survey by the Accountemps firm reveals that the vast majority of Canadian workers feel exhausted. In fact, out of 400 office employees interviewed, 95% of them said they were at least slightly exhausted. What is more, out of 600 managers interviewed, 96% believe that their team members suffer from some degree of burnout.

The survey reveals other consistent results from both respondent categories. For example, on a scale from 1 (not at all exhausted) to 10 (completely exhausted), 20% of managers assessed the level of staff exhaustion at 8 or more, while 22% of employees reported experiencing similar levels of exhaustion.

The causes of exhaustion
What explains such a heaviness? Here, opinions diverge. While managers point the finger at unrealistic workloads, employees rather blame incessant interruptions and emergencies. It is a difference that seems to raise a certain problem of communication between staff and management… A problem which, according to the Entreprises Québec government website, would rightly be a cause for exhaustion. To this is added other reasons such as low recognition, poor workplace relations and the lack of staff participation in decision-making.

At least, according to Koula Vasilopoulos, district president for Accountemps, burnout stems from a corporate culture that does not place enough importance on its employees’ wellness. Fortunately, there are ways to rectify the situation.

Preventive measures
Indeed, to avoid mental health problems at work and the related financial and human resources costs, Ms. Vasilopoulos suggests managers put preventive measures in place. 

One of them is to frequently check with staff whether the workload and deadlines are appropriate. If not, adjust them. Another is to encourage employees to take health breaks (e.g., walking, stretching), while getting completely disconnected from work once the day is over. The Entreprises Québec website, meanwhile, proposes holding regular staff meetings, among other things, and setting up participatory mechanisms for staff.

On the employee side, it is recommended that they quickly identify their source of exhaustion and share it with their manager so they can find solutions together. It is a simple habit to adopt, which can prevent a little fatigue from turning into a pathological state of exhaustion.