Extinguishing Burnout Among Frontline Employees (+ Assessment Guide)

Many employers are aware of the burnout epidemic and its risks, but few have cracked the code on how to help.

The solution starts by acknowledging the scope of the challenge.

Recent research found that 75% of all frontline workers report burnout and the problem is more prevalent among younger employees. More than three-quarters (83%) of Gen Z frontline employees say they are burned out.

High rates of burnout among frontline employees can wreak havoc on a department and the business as a whole. Burnout is associated with lower employee engagement, higher turnover, diminishing customer experiences, and productivity losses, to name just a few.

While individuals can take steps to manage stress and strive for work-life balance, it’s every employer’s responsibility to create an environment in which employees can thrive, rather than simply survive.

Since professionals working on people-leadership teams are another group highly susceptible to burnout, there’s a great opportunity for them to act with empathy and implement solutions that meaningfully improve the work experience – and, in turn, business outcomes.  

Why are so many frontline employees experiencing burnout?

Frontline burnout is an employee experience crisis. And, frustratingly, there is no easy fix.

That’s primarily because burnout is caused by many different things happening in concert.

Here’s a short list of the most common contributing factors to frontline employee burnout:

• Short staffing combined with oversized workloads
• Frustrating and stressful customer interactions
• Lack of resources and power to solve customer problems

For healthcare workers on the frontline, for example, compassion fatigue and traumatic events exacerbate chronic workplace stress, virtually guaranteeing a path to burnout. We saw this during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when burnout levels skyrocketed and many healthcare workers considered changing jobs or leaving the field entirely.

Frontline burnout is bad for people and business

The real cost of burnout is paid by employees and out of the bottom line. The human cost is particularly high for frontline employees. Research reveals that frontline employees, while more likely to experience anxiety and depression related to work stress, are less likely to ask for help than their corporate office counterparts. Taking extra measures to educate frontline employees about the support and resources available to them – such as PTO and mental health benefits – can help.

Additionally, frontline managers can set an example by being open with their teams about how they manage stress and by simply approving PTO requests whenever possible, even if it might create some scheduling challenges.

Stress and burnout can have significant financial and operational costs for businesses, leading to lower employee engagement, increased turnover, and a decline in customer experience.

Disengaged employees are less productive, less innovative, and more likely to make mistakes, while high turnover drives up recruitment and training expenses.

Additionally, burnout affects frontline workers’ ability to provide positive interactions, resulting in dissatisfied customers and potential revenue loss.

Over time, these factors can erode company culture, damage brand reputation, and hinder long-term growth.

How people leaders can protect frontline employees

People leaders can prioritize an anti-burnout strategy to pave the way and, with support from frontline managers, combat the contributing factors to burnout.

Here are some essential steps for people leaders to take in extinguishing frontline burnout.

• Measure burnout levels among frontline teams

Accurately measuring burnout is the first step, since you can’t solve a problem that you don’t understand. Measuring burnout can be challenging but it’s crucial for creating solutions that address the root causes.

Formal burnout assessment surveys exist, such as the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI), which provides scores for three key dimensions of burnout identified by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2019.  

Other assessments and inventories (some of which are described here) offer an alternative to the MBI scores.

Then again, people leaders may not need to deploy specialized assessments to identify burnout in a frontline team. Sometimes, you just know it when you see it.

• Mitigate conditions that cause frontline burnout

Create programs and policies that directly work to alleviate the conditions that contribute to frontline burnout.

Expand support for employees grappling with burnout and work stress. These efforts can include education and training that build resilience and social/emotional skills, therapeutic resources like mindfulness and mental health supports (acupressure, massage, etc), and psychosocial programs like group training on communication, problem-solving, and collaboration strategies and tools.

• Support and educate managers

As with any effort to improve the employee experience, buy-in and participation from managers is crucial.

Frontline managers are just as prone to burnout as their teams. In addition to their training on helping their direct reports, they need appropriate support, information, and compassion.

A sustainable approach to preventing burnout

Burnout among frontline employees is a complex challenge, but you can overcome it.

By taking proactive measures – such as accurately assessing burnout levels, addressing root causes, and equipping managers with the right support – people leaders can create healthier work environments where employees feel valued and empowered.

Prioritizing frontline wellbeing is not just the right thing to do for employees; it’s a smart business strategy that leads to higher engagement, stronger retention, and better customer experiences.

When frontline teams thrive, the entire organization benefits.

Download your free Guide to Assessing Frontline Burnout!