The majority of American workers are burned out and many report that their managers are doing little or nothing to help, according to new research.
The new study from Eagle Hill Consulting, raises fresh concerns about workplace culture, customer service and the long-term health of the US labour market. It reveals that 55% of US employees are experiencing burnout, which is eroding productivity, innovation and morale just as businesses enter the most demanding period of the year. The firm warns that burnout has become a structural threat to organisational performance, not just an HR issue.
“This research is a wake-up call for employers,” said Melissa Jezior, Eagle Hill’s president and CEO. “Burnout isn’t an employee experience issue – it’s a performance, customer service and retention issue. Leaders are wise to really dig in and understand the root causes of burnout specific to their organisation.”
The findings come as millions of US workers navigate the annual surge in holiday-season workloads, when customer expectations climb and staffing shortages become more pronounced. Many employees enter this period already depleted.
BURNOUT HARMING OUTPUT & INNOVATION
“For many employers, November and December are the most demanding months of the year,” Jezior said. “If employees are already burned out before the busy season begins, leaders should expect even deeper performance challenges unless they intervene.”
The 2025 Workforce Burnout Survey, conducted by Ipsos, reveals striking impacts across core business functions:
- 72% say burnout reduces their efficiency
- 71% say it harms their overall job performance
- 65% say it weakens their ability to serve customers
- 64% say it diminishes innovation
- 56% say it affects attendance
Burnout is closely tied to workforce instability, the survey reveals. Burned-out employees are nearly three times more likely to say they plan to leave their employer within the next year – a warning sign for companies already struggling with turnover and tight labour markets.
HYBRID & REMOTE WORKERS HIT HARDEST
Gen Z workers report the highest levels of burnout at 66%, followed by Millennials (58%), Gen X (53%), and Baby Boomers (37%). Remote and hybrid work, while offering flexibility, also appears to intensify strain for some workers. In fact, 61% of fully remote and 57% of hybrid employees say they feel burned out.
Employees attribute burnout equally to workload and work design (50%) and to the people side of work (50%), including team dynamics and collaboration.
LACK OF MANAGERIAL ACTION
One of the report’s most troubling findings is the gap between worker needs and managerial action. Only 42% of burned-out employees have told their manager about their condition. And among those who have spoken up, 42% say their manager took no action at all to help them.
The lack of response, researchers say, contributes to a negative cycle: workers disengage, performance falters, teams weaken, and managers – often overstretched themselves – may feel ill-equipped to intervene. The report signals that burnout is no longer a fringe HR concern, it is an operational and strategic risk affecting a majority of the labour force. As companies plan their priorities for 2026, Eagle Hill says leaders should act decisively: support managers, redesign workloads, revisit staffing and treat burnout as the business-critical issue it has become.
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