Workplace Support for Burnout
Access Treatment for Burnout at Work
Burnout is formally recognised by the World Health Organization as an “occupational phenomenon” caused by chronic workplace stress that has been left unmanaged. Burned-out employees commonly experience feelings of exhaustion, negative thoughts about their job, and reduced productivity.
At Onebright, we provide evidence-based mental health services and treatments for employers looking to support their employees experiencing burnout. This includes therapy, counselling, mental health training, and consultancy.
We support over 200 businesses across the UK to build a happier, healthier work culture. Contact us today to find out more about our workplace support for burnout.
The Impact Of Burnout On Work Performance
Burnout builds gradually over time, often as a result of prolonged periods of stress with little to no recovery time in between. Individuals experiencing burnout can experience a range of mental, emotional, and physical symptoms that can negatively impact their work performance. Commonly reported symptoms include:
Feelings of exhaustion
Feeling a consistent sense of emotional and physical exhaustion can make ordinary work tasks feel harder to complete and reduce motivation.
Cynicism and detachment
Burnout can cause a sense of distance between the individual and their job or colleagues, making it hard to stay engaged.
Difficulty Concentrating
A reduced ability to focus can make it challenging to switch between tasks, leading to slower decision-making and lower quality output.
Irritability and Reduced Patience
Having a lower tolerance for everyday work pressures and interruptions can affect working relationships and make working with other colleagues more difficult.
Physical symptoms
Physical symptoms include disrupted sleep, muscle tension, headaches, and fatigue. This can make it harder to concentrate on work.
Social withdrawal
Burned-out employees might avoid meetings and conversations with colleagues, making collaborative work a challenge to complete efficiently.
Common Causes Of Burnout At Work
A sustained, excessive workload that feels unmanageable.
A lack of control or autonomy over how work is planned and carried out.
Unclear expectations about the job role and being unsure about what is deemed as ‘enough’.
Feeling unsupported by management, particularly during periods of high pressure.
Poor work-life balance and having insufficient time to recover from prolonged periods of high stress.
Organisational changes and job insecurity adding extra stress to everyday work.
Expert Mental Health Support For Managing Burnout in the Workplace
At Onebright, we offer a range of services and treatments designed to support burnout recovery and reduce the likelihood of it happening again. We offer individual treatments, such as therapy, to help individuals manage the psychological impact of burnout, as well as training and consultancy to help address the causes of burnout at the source.
Therapy and Counselling
Approaches like Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and counselling and psychotherapy help individuals understand their thoughts, feelings, behaviours resulting from burnout and how they can effectively manage them. We offer evidence-based therapy for adults that is delivered by accredited clinicians in-person or remotely.
Therapy services 
Mental Health Training
Our mental health training helps managers recognise the early signs of burnout in their team and respond appropriately. This can support early intervention and ensure the issue can be effectively addressed before it becomes a bigger problem.
Mental health training
Wellbeing Consultancy
Our wellbeing consultancy services work with employers to identify the organisational factors contributing to burnout, such as workload distribution and management practices, and build practical strategies to help address them.
Consultancy services
£45bn annual cost to UK employers of poor mental health
5-6x return on investment in audit and training
350+ training sessions delivered every year
How Our Burnout Support Can Help You
Reduced Sickness Absence
Addressing burnout early and implementing strategies that address the root causes of burnout reduces the likelihood of it escalating into long-term sickness absence.
Improved Productivity
Supporting employees experiencing burnout helps improve concentration, motivation, and work output. This can improve productivity and work quality.
Better Employee Retention
Employees who feel supported through burnout are less likely to leave, reducing the costs and disruption of staff turnover and recruiting.
A Healthier Workplace Culture
Offering accessible support for burnout encourages employees to seek help sooner and reduces stigma around workplace mental health.
More Confident Staff
Training gives managers the confidence to address burnout in their team, while employees feel more confident establishing and managing their work-life boundaries.
Stronger Staff Engagement
Teams that feel supported are more likely to stay engaged with their work, collaborate on tasks effectively, and maintain high levels of work performance.
Guides to Work-Related Burnout
Exploring the Effectiveness of Online Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Stress Management
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"Access to therapy was sorted for me so quickly and smoothly I was taken aback after fighting so hard for NHS support. I don't have enough kind words for the care and professionalism I've experienced."
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FAQs
No. Although burnout and stress are similar in many ways, they are their own individual conditions.
Stress is a response to high-pressure situations that usually eases once the pressure lifts. Burnout develops as a result of prolonged periods of stress that are left unmanaged. This can result in feelings of exhaustion, detachment from work, and reduced productivity that does not resolve with a short break.
Stress is a response to high-pressure situations that usually eases once the pressure lifts. Burnout develops as a result of prolonged periods of stress that are left unmanaged. This can result in feelings of exhaustion, detachment from work, and reduced productivity that does not resolve with a short break.
Yes. There are various strategies that can be used to treat burnout, such as therapy, counselling, and implementing mental health provisions at an organisational level.
Talking therapies like CBT can help address the psychological impact of burnout, while changes to workload and working patterns can address the underlying causes of burnout. The most effective way of treating burnout is by addressing individual impact as well as organisational causes.
Talking therapies like CBT can help address the psychological impact of burnout, while changes to workload and working patterns can address the underlying causes of burnout. The most effective way of treating burnout is by addressing individual impact as well as organisational causes.
If you believe an employee is experiencing burnout, you should:
- Start with a private, supportive conversation to get an understanding of their experience.
- Consider practical adjustments that can be made to address the causes of burnout, such as workload adjustments and setting clearer expectations.
- If required, refer the employee to professional support.
- Start with a private, supportive conversation to get an understanding of their experience.
- Consider practical adjustments that can be made to address the causes of burnout, such as workload adjustments and setting clearer expectations.
- If required, refer the employee to professional support.
Yes, burnout can lead to absences from work and can escalate into longer-term sickness absence if it isn’t effectively addressed. According to HSE’s 2024/2025 statistics, 22.1 million working days were lost as a result of work-related stress, depression, or anxiety, which are closely related to burnout.
Recognising warning signs early and providing access to appropriate support reduces the risk of burnout turning into an absence.
Recognising warning signs early and providing access to appropriate support reduces the risk of burnout turning into an absence.