New Guidance Issued on Rising Burnout Risk

LONDON, UK — Following new indications that burnout is now a leading cause of employee turnover, business growth specialist Dawn McGruer has released updated guidance warning organisations to take early burnout symptoms more seriously.

The intervention comes as SurveyMonkey’s 2025 Workplace Culture and Trends research reports that 36% of HR professionals cite burnout as the top reason employees leave companies where HR plays a vital role. The findings point to an ongoing challenge for employers already navigating talent shortages, increased absenteeism and heightened pressure on workplace wellbeing initiatives. Many businesses have attempted to introduce wellbeing programmes in recent years, but McGruer says these efforts often fail without addressing the underlying organisational causes of chronic stress.

McGruer, an award-winning author, speaker and workplace performance expert, says the latest figures reflect a deeper issue that has been building for years: chronic overwork, blurred boundaries and a persistent culture of urgency. She warns that without decisive action, organisations risk further declines in productivity, wellbeing and retention.

“Many people don’t realise they’re overdoing it until long after the damage is done,” McGruer says. “We’ve confused being busy with being valuable, and it’s silently draining people. The focus shouldn’t just be on self-care, but on system care — rebuilding how we live and work to prevent burnout before it starts.”

According to McGruer, burnout rarely arrives suddenly. Instead, it develops through identifiable early patterns that organisations often miss. Her newly released guidance highlights several early-stage markers: persistent tiredness that remains even with rest, cycles of constant busyness without genuine purpose, reluctance to set boundaries, and reduced ability to pause or take short breaks. Feelings of isolation or lack of support within teams also play a central role.

She notes that the SurveyMonkey statistic adds weight to what many UK businesses are already experiencing: rising turnover, disengagement and increased sick leave linked to prolonged workplace stress. But McGruer argues that the real issue — and the solution — lies within organisational culture rather than individual employees.

“When a workplace normalises constant urgency or unlimited availability, people begin overriding their own limits,” she says. “That’s when exhaustion becomes routine rather than temporary, and when turnover becomes almost inevitable.”

McGruer urges employers to reassess workloads, meeting culture and expectations around communication and availability. She believes the new data presents an opportunity for organisations to act early, protecting staff wellbeing while improving performance and stability. She adds that small behavioural shifts, when adopted consistently across teams and leadership, can have a measurable impact on morale and long-term productivity.

“Burnout is preventable, but only when the warning signs are recognised early and addressed systemically,” she adds.

Source: SurveyMonkey’s 2025 Workplace Culture and Trends research. https://www.surveymonkey.com/curiosity/work-life-balance-statistics/ 

Contact info:

Name: Dawn McGruer

Email: PRTeam@nostringspublicrelations.com

Website: https://dawnmcgruer.com/