Are Almost Half of Employees Burned out?

 A new CareerBuilder survey suggests that employers are currently casting doubts on the effectiveness of their workforce. The productivity survey found that nearly half of employers (45%) think that their workers are currently burned out on their jobs.

The survey also looked at seasonal effectiveness and concluded that 26% of employers say their employees are less productive in the summertime. While the “Summer Slump” is somewhat anticipated due to improved weather, family commitment, and vacations – Employer’s suggestion that 45% of employees are burned out implies a distressing lack of confidence in the current workforce, or a seriously overworked collective. One possible antagonist includes the most recent economic recession, and the hardships incurred – both inside and outside the workplace:

“The recession produced consequences for not just those who were laid off, but also for the many employees who were asked to work harder as a result of leaner staffs,” said Brent Rasmussen, president of CareerBuilder North America. “While getting more out of a smaller workforce is a sign of organizational agility during unpredictable times, it’s hard to see such yields in productivity holding forever. Headcount will be needed to meet increasing demands.”

Even more alarming were the lopsided survey results from the employee’s perspective: 77% of workers say they are sometimes or always burned out in their jobs, while 43% of workers say their stress levels on the job have increased over the last six months.

The spiraling exhaustion likely stems from employer’s increasing demands – while less hands exist to bear the burden. 46% of employees reported an increase in their workloads in the last six months, while only 8% said their workloads decreased.

CareerBuilder is a provider of global talent solutions. Their productivity survey was based on the results of 2,662 U.S. hiring managers (non-government) and 5,299 U.S. workers between May 19 and June 8, 2011