As an employer or manager, it’s crucial to know how to manage employee burnout during the holiday season. While this period can be a joyous one, it can also be extremely stressful. Meeting deadlines and completing projects by the end of the year can put immense pressure on people in your company. 

Therefore, it’s crucial to implement strategies to prevent your employees from being too overwhelmed during this time. If you want to navigate the holiday season with less stress, here are a few ways to manage employee burnout.

What Is Employee Burnout?

It’s normal to feel stressed at work, but employee burnout is a more severe and prolonged condition. People suffering from burnout feel physically, emotionally, and mentally fatigued. This could be caused by high expectations, excess work, or other pressure and stress in the workplace.

Over 75% of employees experience burnout at least occasionally. And while it can happen anytime during their employment, things may be especially stressful during the holidays. In fact, 42% of workers claim that December is the most stressful time of the year.

What Are the Symptoms of Employee Burnout?

At first glance, employee burnout may look or feel a lot like stress. But there are some key differences that you should be on the lookout for. Common symptoms of employee burnout include:

• Chronic fatigue: The feeling of being excessively tired and unable to recover even after rest or extended breaks.
• Decreased productivity: Employees may have a hard time focusing or producing quality work.
• Detachment from work: Burnout can cause employees to feel emotionally distant, cynical, or unmotivated to perform at work.
• Irritability: It’s common for employees to be impatient or have intense mood swings.
• Physical hindrances: Employees experiencing burnout may cause physical symptoms like headaches, sleep issues, immune illnesses, and gastrointestinal problems.

How to Manage Employee Burnout During the Holiday Season

For many people, the holiday season is a time to celebrate. But if you have employees suffering from burnout, it can be a source of stress rather than relaxation. As a manager or employer, it’s your responsibility to ensure that your employees have the help and resources they need to push through.

Encourage Vacation or Time Off

The holidays are a time to disconnect from work to focus on friends and family. In addition to the legal bank holidays, you should be encouraging your employees to take time off. That way, they can fully unplug from the stressors of the workplace without feeling guilty. 

If vacation or time off is not realistic, you can still discourage employees from working overtime. That includes checking and responding to emails after the workday is over! And you can set up times during the day where employees can go for

Allow Flexible Working Arrangements

Commuting and working in the office can cause extra stress for some employees. If you are able to offer a flexible work arrangement, you might alleviate some of that pressure during the holidays. Allow your employees to work from home or even while they’re on vacation or visiting family out of state. Being able to balance their personal life with their professional responsibilities can make a big difference.

Create a Holiday Atmosphere in the Office

Making things festive can be a great way to lighten the mood in the office during the holidays. While many companies throw holiday parties, you may also consider team-building events, happy hours, or free lunches. Or you can organize a volunteering event or charity work for people to participate in. Giving back to the community can definitely lift spirits and create a sense of purpose among employees!

Acknowledge Achievements and Show Appreciation

People experiencing burnout often feel like their efforts go unnoticed and unappreciated. But taking the time to recognize their good work can go a long way in reducing feelings of stress. 

There are many different ways you can do this as an employer. For example, you can give out year-end or holiday bonus paychecks to high-performing individuals. Or you can publicly acknowledge achievements or work during a meeting or team gathering. And since it’s the holidays, your employees will also appreciate small gifts or even hand-written thank you notes.

Offer Outside Support

Burnout can be a very serious issue – one that might not be solved by a few extra vacation days or holiday bonuses. In these types of situations, it can be extremely useful to offer your employees access to professional support. Whether it’s health-care-covered therapy or reimbursement for online counseling, providing this extra service can be greatly appreciated. 

Encourage Well-Being Activities

A job shouldn’t be all work and no play! While you may be running a professional workplace, it’s perfectly okay to promote relaxation every once in a while. Encourage your employees to practice self-care by offering different activities in and outside the office. This could be on-site yoga, subscriptions to meditation apps, or even after-work classes. 

Another option is to set aside certain times during the day for non-work related activities. Going to the gym, taking a walk in the park, or spending an hour in a coffee shop can be great for their mental health. These types of things can reduce stress while also giving them something to enjoy outside of the office.

Knowing how to manage employee burnout during the holiday season is essential for a healthy and productive workforce. As a manager or employer, it’s your responsibility to ensure that you foster a supportive environment. Even though the holidays can be busy, it’s still important to implement a few strategies to motivate and energize your employees. However, this is something that you should be doing throughout the entire year. If you want some more productivity-boosting ideas, here are a few ways to improve your employee’s well-being after the holiday season.