Research from Eagle Hill Consulting, a company that provides unconventional management consulting services in the areas of strategy and performance, talent and change, shows that 52% of US government employees say they are burned out from their jobs.
The amount is notably higher than private sector workers, which is 46%.
While this high level of workforce burnout is concerning, has decreased since last year (56%). Burnout levels are highest among women (59%), younger workers (57%), and low-income government workers (54%).
When asked how the staff shortage is affecting their workload, the 84% of government workers answered that they experience burnout because they are covering the workload of vacant positions; 47% said they are helping others learn their job; 42% are training new employees; and 21% said they are recruiting and interviewing new employees.
The investigation also indicates that worker departures are likely to continue, as a third of the government workforce (33%) plan to leave their job in the next 12 months. Planned exit rates are even higher for younger workers (43%) and low-income workers (44%).
“While it is good news that burnout among government workers has decreased slightly, depletion levels remain very problematicsaid Melissa Jezior, president and CEO of Eagle Hill Consulting.
“Demands for the government workforce are only growing, while public sector employers continue to face recruitment and retention challenges. Public employers must get to the root causes of worker burnout and implement solutions. Otherwise, it’s a never-ending cycle of government employees burned out, stressed out and looking for another job. That is simply not sustainable for workers and the provision of essential public services,” added Jezior.
In the Eagle Hill Consulting report, public employees indicate there are practical actions employers can take to reduce burnout, including more flexibility to better health and wellness benefits.
“The first step for government leaders is start honest conversations with workers about burnout, which will help to solve the problem. The positive news from our research is that most government employees are comfortable telling their employer about their burnout levels, so it’s time to start the dialogue,” Jezior said.
These findings are based on Eagle Hill Consulting’s 2023 Workforce Burnout Survey conducted February 9-13, 2023. The survey included 1,001 respondents from a random sample of employees across the US on burnout. and the holidays.
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