According to Mental Health America, burnout is the result of ongoing stress that leaves a person feeling exhausted. That exhaustion often reveals itself in emotional, physical, and mental ways. Construction worker burnout might happen for reasons like working too many long shifts, performing repetitive tasks shift after shift, or feeling overly stressed for a long period of time.
Burnout is particularly problematic in construction because employees often work in hazardous areas. If someone suffering from burnout feels too distracted to focus, they might not see a sign warning them to take safety precautions. Construction worker burnout could also contribute to some of the most common job site safety risks, such as slips and falls, exposure to dangerous chemicals, and mistakes while using machinery.
Learning more about the importance of construction workforce wellbeing will make it possible for you to address construction worker burnout before it causes problems. Tackling the problem as soon as possible could also make your workforce more productive.
Identifying Early Signs of Burnout
Knowing how to identify the early signs of burnout makes it much easier to intervene before the condition causes problems in the field. It’s important, however, to know that people can show a broad range of symptoms as they near burnout.
Physical Symptoms of Burnout
Some of the most common physical symptoms of burnout include frequent illnesses and prolonged fatigue. Has someone started calling in sick more often than usual? That’s an early sign of burnout.
Emotional Signs of Burnout
Emotional signs of burnout can include detachment, irritability, and decreased motivation.
You might recognize these changes when an easygoing employee starts arguing with coworkers, an engaged worker stops participating in conversations, or a productive person’s metrics begin to fall.
Behavioral Changes
Behavioral changes can include increased absenteeism and reduced productivity.
You’ve likely noticed some common signs throughout these areas. Burnout makes people feel like they don’t want to — or physically cannot — go to work. When they do get to work, they simply go through the motions instead of excelling. Burnout is bad for the employee, and it’s bad for your business.
The Correlation Between Burnout and Safety Incidents
The construction industry has a much higher number of slips, falls, and trips than the average industry. In any given year, you can expect more than 1,000 construction workers to get injured by slipping, falling, or tripping on the job. Luckily, few of these injuries are fatal. Even nonfatal injuries, however, can disrupt operations and hurt employee morale.
It’s easy to see how construction worker burnout contributes to these numbers. Jobsite safety risks are inherent to construction because employees must use heavy-duty equipment in hazardous areas.
Regulations help make job sites safer, but many of those regulations rely on workers following directions. For example, the construction company might need to post a sign telling employees to wear protective gear when entering an area. A fatigued or distracted construction worker might not see that sign, or they might dismiss it out of apathy. This is just one of many ways burnout contributes to safety incidents.
Strategies for Preventing Burnout
What can you do to enhance construction workforce wellbeing and combat burnout? Ideally, you can implement several strategies, such as:
- Implementing work-life balance initiatives, such as requiring employees to use a percentage of their PTO each year and creating schedules that give workers plenty of rest between shifts.
- Providing mental health resources and support so anyone struggling with the early signs of burnout can seek assistance before it affects their job performance.
- Fostering a supportive work environment where employees feel free to raise concerns without getting into trouble or losing opportunities.
The Role of Temp Staffing Partners in Mitigating Burnout
Finding a reliable temp staffing partner can also help mitigate burnout. With reliable dispatch, vetted employees, an E-verified workforce, and on-demand hiring, we ensure that our clients have the workers they need precisely when we need them. Together, we can provide the support your team needs to execute the job safely. Reach out to HireQuest Direct today!
