Employers don't do enough to prevent burnout recurrence: study

Dutch employers take too few steps to prevent recurrence of burnout in their employees, according to a study by Kantar Public on behalf of Zilveren Kruis. 56 percent of employees who return to work after recovering from a burnout, find that their manager did not make any changes, NU.nl reports.

The researchers surveyed 533 people who suffered a burnout over the past five years and since returned to work. 55 percent of the respondents are worried about a relapse. Only a third think that their managers or supervisors learnt anything from the experience. 54 percent aren't convinced of that. And nearly 30 percent don't think they can discuss the topic of burnout with their managers.

According to Arnold Bakker, professor of occupational- and organizational psychology, after a burnout employers too often only focus on the employee involved, instead of also looking at the work environment. "The employee gets a coach and, for example, goes on a mindfulness course. All focused on better dealing with stress. While there is usually something that needs to change about the work and circumstances inside the organization itself, to avoid a new burnout."