Why Employee Burnout Is Rising
82% of employees worldwide are at risk of burnout right now. And most organizations still don't know why. Burnout is no longer a personal problem or an HR problem. It's an organizational problem, and the data proves it.
According to the statistics, here are the main reasons behind rising employee burnout and organizational burnout.
1. Heavy and unsustainable workloads
Heavy workloads are the top driver, reported by 35% of respondents (Aflac WorkForces Report, 2025), and 82% of employees globally are at risk of burnout, but only about half of all organizations have designed work with wellbeing in mind (Mercer Global Talent Trends). How can organizations design work with wellbeing in mind? See our blog.
2. Poor boundaries in remote and hybrid work
72% of remote and hybrid employees report burnout, compared to 63% of fully in-office employees, with blurred work-life boundaries and difficulty disconnecting as the primary drivers (Gallup, State of the Global Workplace 2025). Many employees and teams are disappointed because their request to work remotely or in hybrid gets rejected, and this data shows exactly the reason behind that decision.
Can you imagine working from home where your private life, home chores and family are all there while you try to focus on work? Or can you imagine how your brain responds when two days you're home and three days you're in the office? Office life and private life must be completely separated, and this separation starts from logistics.
3. AI driven job insecurity
69% of workers fear AI related layoffs, with rising AI anxiety linked to burnout and collapsing employer trust (Fair Play Talks, 2026). Psychological safety is the first step for people to thrive, and it comes from trust and feeling safe.
This reality can not be ignored. Many layoffs are happening right now because of AI driven roles. For this reason it is more important than ever to build up AI skills alongside soft skills. Let's remember, AI is a competitor for roles, but AI can never have the soft skills we as human beings have.
4. Manager quality
This is one of the reasons our CEO Angela Boyajian experienced burnout years ago, because of a manager with poor management quality. Gallup research also confirms managers are a central driver of the differences in burnout and engagement across teams.
5. Perceived unfairness and lack of support
Employees who feel unsupported are 70% more likely to experience burnout, and employees who perceive unfair treatment are 2.3 times more likely to suffer from it (Zippia, 2026). These numbers tell exactly why organizational support and wellbeing support are needed for high performing teams.
6. Younger workers are disproportionately affected
Gen Z reports the highest burnout of any generation at 66%, ahead of Millennials at 58%, with the 25 to 34 age bracket peaking at 83%
7. Financial stress and broader economic uncertainty
Financial worries, job insecurity and global uncertainty compound occupational stress on top of workload pressure. We do not have the power to stop uncertainties happening globally, but we do have the power in our mind to protect our inner peace and wellbeing.
8. Access to quality burnout prevention and wellbeing programs is a huge gap
Many companies do pay for wellbeing programs, but employees end up with pop-up notifications or self paced learning that they just ignore.
All this data supports that burnout in the workplace is a result of workload, trust, psychological safety, AI insecurity and underperforming wellbeing programs.
Help your team and organization perform better and reduce burnout through a gamified wellbeing program where they feel engaged, have fun and focus rather than passively listening or filling out surveys.
