Encourage employees to take time off, it could curb burnout

Burnout is a prevalent issue throughout Aussie workplaces, and according to data, it is only getting worse. So, how can leaders help protect employee mental wellbeing?

According to the “HR Lady” Wendy Sellers, “just give them a million dollars and a month off”.

Jokes aside, leaders should begin by acknowledging the hard work people are putting in. Further to that is encouraging them to take leave. Whether the leave is used for a holiday or simply relaxing at home, time off can be a great way to reduce the risk of burnout.

“I think the biggest thing is having the recognition that, hey, my employee or employees have been burning the midnight oil for quite some time, and nobody can continue doing that. I could tell you right now myself, I’m going on vacation on Saturday, which I should have gone on two months ago because I am so fried, and I’m like, OK, don’t ever do that again, Wendy. Don’t take that long to be going on even just a little vacation,” Sellers said.

“If you have paid time off … ensure that your employees are actually taking the vacation, taking their leave so that they can go rest and relax. They don’t need to go anywhere. That’s not up to you to force them to get on a cruise, to go to the beach or go skiing. It’s really saying, hey, we care about you. We want you to rest and relax.”

Sellers noted that burnout can be stalled and even eliminated through some time off. However, this doesn’t address the root cause of the issue.

“It’s more than that. Why are they burned out? Is it because you don’t have positions that are filled? OK, what are we going to do to fill those positions? Is it because you have a new client and you gave an unreasonable deadline? OK, let’s not do that again,” she said.

“I personally would ask your employees, maybe do a confidential employee engagement survey saying, we see a high level of unused time or people not taking vacations. And now you could say, confidentially, they spoke up and said they’re afraid of their manager, or they’re saving it for this, or they don’t want to disappoint the client. Well, if that’s the reason they’re not maybe going on leave, then eventually they’re going to crash and burn and disappoint the client anyways.”

Eliminating unreasonable deadlines can also take the pressure off employees. While deadlines are important for managing productivity, when taken to the extreme, it can affect wellbeing, a negative impactor on performance.

“Often, as salespeople, we give unreasonable deadlines, and we agree to unreasonable deadlines. And then we shove them down on our employees. So, we should really be saying, before we bring this client on and give them a sales proposal, what are the deadlines we should realistically be talking about? Of course, we’re always going to push our employees a little bit, but we should be somewhat realistic. So, when they see that deadline, they don’t just walk out the door and never come back,” Sellers said.

“Your employees need to trust you, your managers, and then everybody up the food chain, too. Managers need to be clear with their expectations … Do I feel comfortable to speak up to you? And if they don’t, then there’s an issue. Now, don’t go pointing the finger at the manager … let’s really find out because the manager might have the same similar unreasonable expectations being pushed on them.”