A significant number of UK workers are experiencing burnout, with the majority feeling stressed, getting easily frustrated with colleagues, struggling to get out of bed on workdays, and wanting to quit their job.
Nearly three-quarter (74 percent) of UK workers report significant levels of burnout, according to research in O.C. Tanner’s 2025 Global Culture Report.
The data from research with 38,075 workers from 27 countries including 4,896 from the UK, also revealed that 42 percent of UK workers could qualify for a probable diagnosis of depression with 39 percent qualifying for a probable diagnosis of anxiety.
The 39 percent of employees likely to be dealing with anxiety also said their job was causing them mental health problems. In addition to this, many respondents in this group said their teams were toxic and they struggled with workload. Researchers said that employees with probable depression also report hating their job and feeling lonely at work.
Robert Ordever, European managing director at O.C. Tanner, said: “The number of employees experiencing mental health struggles at work is reaching epidemic proportions.
“If organisations don’t address the issues head-on rather than trying to paper over the cracks, the fallout will become harder and harder to manage.”
The report said that poor organisational cultures exacerbate employees’ mental health battles. It said key workplace causes of employee anxiety, depression and burnout include a lack of organisational purpose, few opportunities to grow and develop and a traditional authoritarian leadership approach. Limited employee recognition and a failure to prioritise wellbeing are also significant factors that impact workers’ mental health.
“Leaders must take a multi-pronged approach to addressing mental health in the workplace rather than just relying on initiatives that support workers already suffering with poor wellbeing,” Ordever said.
“As well as looking to remove the stigma around mental illness, and encouraging colleagues to discuss their struggles openly, business leaders must take an honest look at their workplace culture to see how it can better mitigate mental health issues.”
The results showed that burnout is 80 percent less likely when there’s a modern leadership approach at work, 83 percent less likely when an organisation provides growth and development opportunities, and 87 percent less likely when a culture of appreciation exists.
“Employee recognition can significantly improve mental health outcomes as feeling appreciated is a powerful emotion that underpins thriving workplaces. Recognition that’s an integrated part of employees’ daily experiences, not only reduces the likelihood of burnout, anxiety, and depression, it also cuts the costs and impacts of staff attrition, absenteeism and presenteeism,” he said.
