Workplace Systems Push One-Third of Workers Toward Burnout

More than one in three Australian workers experience burnout, a survey of 999 people found. Workers in organisations with “high levels of system friction” face 84 per cent higher odds of burnout. The report points to the machinery of work: the systems, schedules and demands organisations impose on people.

The workplace sets the terms

Amlan Sharma, a 38-year-old occupational therapist, said exhaustion, diminished purpose and confidence, and getting less done became normal for him in the years after the COVID-19 pandemic. He saw similar experiences in some of his patients. “That’s where I started to realise: ‘Hang on, I might be burnt out,’” he said.

Sharma said rigid schedules and limited autonomy disillusioned him. “It was high job demands, excessive workload, time pressure, constant interruptions,” he said. Problems beyond his control wore him down. Despite the financial challenges, he moved to self-employment and reduced his hours, which he said helped his recovery. “Over time I started to realise that actually I’m not the problem,” he said.

Think tank Infinite Potential published the report in partnership with Beyond Blue and the University of Technology Sydney Business School, using responses from 999 Australian survey respondents. Study author and Infinite Potential managing director John Chan said burnout rates varied widely between organisations. “We’re trying to move this conversation away from the individual,” he said.

Anna Stephens, a senior lecturer at the University Technology Sydney (UTS) Business School and researcher at The Ultimo Institute who helped design and conduct the survey, said organisational factors can create “unnecessary difficulties in actually completing your work”. Chan called the cognitive burden workplace “friction”. Poorly designed online systems, lengthy bureaucratic processes, unclear instructions and expectations, and pointless meetings can all contribute.

Insecurity, interruptions and control

The survey found burnout among 68 per cent of Australians who didn’t feel secure in their jobs, compared with 20 per cent of those who felt very secure. Chan said insecurity could stem from restructures, global politics or uncertainty about AI.

Fragmentation also matters. Workers switch between activities during the day, including meetings, tasks and software, often with little control. Stephens described “constant interruption or multiple competing priorities” dividing attention. The daily drag isn’t always one overwhelming demand. Paula Brough, a professor of organisational psychology and director of the Centre for Work, Organisation and Wellbeing in the Business School at Griffith University, said workplace hassles and red tape are a key predictor of occupational stress, “not necessarily burnout”. “It’s often the workplace hassles which just eat away at you because they’re daily,” she said.

Brough said established workload factors include extended long hours, a lack of resources or support, and little control over work. Workers may not control their shifts, colleagues or hospital ward. “You can have a high workload, but if you also have high levels of support and control, it doesn’t necessarily equate to levels of stress or burnout,” she said.

A diagnosis with limits—and responsibility

The survey used the World Health Organization definition of burnout as an “occupational phenomenon” and “not a medical condition”. The WHO identifies exhaustion, increased mental distance or cynicism toward a job, and reduced professional efficacy as its three dimensions. Chan said all three must be present. “If you’re just simply exhausted, that’s not burnout.” Brough said stress and burnout weren’t interchangeable: “Burnout is the extreme end of the continuum [and] stress is the start of it.”

Brough urged caution about the survey’s small sample. The reported burnout levels were a little higher than she expected, she said, and the findings didn’t include participants’ industries. Burnout is typically higher in public-facing and high-risk jobs, she said, including bus driving, customer service and emergency services. She also said there was “nothing new” in connecting environmental factors with burnout.

Chan said leaders and organisations have a responsibility to create the right work environment, while workers should speak up when something isn’t right or they need support. Stephens recommended monitoring workload and communicating often with managers. The report’s proposed response focuses on changing workplace processes and seeking support; Sharma’s account shows the personal cost of trying to escape rigid schedules and limited autonomy. Stephens said friction and fragmentation drain cognitive and emotional resources, leaving people “with less fuel in the tank, not just for work, but for the important things in our life as well.”