For some, work life became easier during the pandemic, thanks to shortened commutes and virtual meetings. Not so for Jennifer, a nonprofit worker in Washington, D.C., whose bosses piled more work on her plate than she could reasonably manage during regular work hours.
When she raised the problem with her supervisor, “she just shrugged and didn’t do anything,” said Jennifer, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to protect her identity while she seeks full-time employment. It was the organization’s busiest year on record, but no new employees were hired, she said. “There was just an expectation that we would get all the work done.”
Another problem: Jennifer said managers were not meaningfully acting on their stated commitments to equity and inclusion — behavior that clashed with her personal values. And she didn’t see any real potential for growth, either.
“I just saw that my workload was going to get heavier and heavier without any real recognition or reward or support, and I don’t want that for myself,” said Jennifer.
She resigned in June, without another full-time job lined up. She and her family are now having to manage without her steady paycheck and the financial security that came with it.
She’s not alone. Millions of Americans are leaving their jobs in what has become known as the “Great Resignation.”
The phenomenon is affecting all sectors, according to Stacy Pursell, founder and CEO of a nonprofit recruiting firm.
“People have reassessed their priorities during the pandemic” and “reevaluated their lifestyle,” she said. While some are moving into the nonprofit sector to pursue a cause they care about, others are leaving it due to “compassion fatigue” — feelings of exhaustion or emotional withdrawal that can result from caring for others, especially trauma victims — and other reasons.
The nonprofit sector, notes Katie Barrows, interim president of the Nonprofit Professional Employees Union, is “notorious for low pay and long hours.” She described burnout as an “industry problem” for the sector.
Exhaustion, cynicism and inefficiency
Many attribute widespread resignations to burnout, a syndrome the World Health Organization describes as feelings of exhaustion, cynicism and inefficiency due to chronic workplace stress.
The syndrome is on the rise, according to a recent survey of 1,500 workers across industries by Indeed, an employment website. More than half of respondents said they are burned out, and two-thirds say it’s gotten worse over the course of the pandemic. Jennifer, however, resists the term because it points blame on employees rather than managers and organizations.
“I’m not depressed,” she said. “I don’t have low energy. I’m wildly enthusiastic about … working hard for a cause that matters. I’m just no longer willing to do it at such a great personal cost, and I don’t think I have to.”
Christina Maslach, a psychology professor at the University of California at Berkeley who studies the issue, echoes the point.
“The workplace is beginning to stretch more and more beyond the boundaries of human capability,” she said. “At some point, that stress response is kicking in, and it’s going to take you down.”
Job-related stress was high before the pandemic, thanks to increasing workloads and expectations of availability, reduced job security, and other factors. But it has surged for many over the last year, especially among those who can’t work from home. Others have been stretched thin from caring and teaching young children from home while also holding down a job, grieving the loss of loved ones and living in relative isolation.
Getting to the root cause
Professional “burnout” arises when workers lack autonomy or social support, have unclear job descriptions, can’t meet personal or family responsibilities, or work in otherwise dysfunctional settings, experts say. Symptoms can be physical, emotional, and behavioral, and include fatigue, illness, substance abuse, social withdrawal and more.
How can nonprofits support employee mental health and reduce turnover?
Many solutions relate to self-care, through movement, meditation, exercise, sleep, diet, social support and more. But Maslach and others urge leaders to go beyond coping strategies when addressing the issue.
“One of the things that we always advise companies to do is to look at the root cause and understand why employees are burned out,” said Libby Rapin, cofounder of BluWave Wellbeing, a company that helps organizations support employee wellbeing.
“It’s so easy as a nonprofit to be the ‘yes man’,” added cofounder Lisa Thompson.
Nonprofits should instead prioritize activities that sustain the organization and will have the most impact. She and Rapin offer additional recommendations in a recent article.
Barrows encourages employees to organize.
“Unions are a good way to prevent burnout because it gives employees a voice and makes sure that managers and employers listen to them and make changes to the workplace so that folks can continue on working there and have long-term jobs,” she said.
Solutions depend on the workplace, she said, but can include pay raises, paid time off, flexible working hours, manageable workloads, support for mental health, comp time, and more.
Maslach, meanwhile, notes that burnout is a stress response to chronic job stressors that haven’t been well managed. She urges leaders and managers to identify the causes of stress and develop solutions. Some questions to consider include:
- Workload. Work-life balance is essential to mental health. Are work demands too high? Can employees manage workloads and meet their personal and family obligations as well? Is meeting work responsibilities possible during a typical workday or week?
- Control. A sense of autonomy is essential to mental health. Do workers have control over their work and how do they manage it?
- Recognition. Rewards go beyond salary and benefits; they’re about giving positive feedback for a job well done. Are workers thanked for their efforts and recognized for their expertise? Or are they only penalized when something goes wrong?
- Community. Are relationships between and among workers, managers, and others in the workplace community built on trust and support? Is cheating, lying or favoritism tolerated? What about bullying or harassment?
- Fairness. Are rules and policies applied fairly and equitably to all, regardless of background? Does any form of discrimination exist?
- Values. Are workers forced to violate their ethics or put in compromising positions when carrying out their roles and assignments?
There is no one-size-fits-all solution across and within organizations, Maslach said. Managers must consider general principles and customize solutions with worker input.
