How workplace burnout spreads across entire teams
Workplace burnout can spread across entire teams, undermining morale and productivity as excessive workloads, internal conflict and poor work-life balance drain employees’ emotional resources over time.
How collective burnout develops
Burnout is not always confined to individuals. Entire teams can experience it, particularly after demanding projects that require sustained effort and emotional investment, psychological counsellor Peter-Vlad Ianușevici said on Moldova 1's Bună Dimineața (Good Morning) programme.
“Burnout is both an individual and a team process. In other words, an entire team can reach a state of burnout, particularly after periods in which its members have invested considerable effort and energy in specific projects,” Ianușevici said.
Workplace conditions and interpersonal relationships can also contribute to collective exhaustion. One example is workplace bullying, also known as mobbing, which involves repeated intimidation, isolation or attempts to undermine an employee by one or more colleagues.
A lack of shared organisational goals can further undermine motivation. When employees do not understand their institution's direction or identify with a common purpose, maintaining long-term commitment becomes increasingly difficult.
Work-life balance and management responsibilities
Excessive workloads pose another risk, particularly for employees who devote most of their energy to their jobs at the expense of their personal lives.
“Problems arise when people confuse their workplace with their entire lives. Investing all our energy in work may be possible, and even normal, during the first three or six months, perhaps even a year. But after that, we need to restore a healthier balance, look after ourselves and those around us, as well as our work,” Ianușevici said.
Managers play an important role in preventing collective burnout. They need to monitor team dynamics, encourage communication and ensure that responsibilities are not concentrated in the hands of a single employee.
Staff should also be able to raise concerns about workplace difficulties, including problems involving management.
A manager experiencing burnout does not necessarily mean the entire team will follow suit. However, distributing responsibilities fairly and ensuring that the organisation can function independently of one individual are essential safeguards.
“In general, things should not depend on one person. An organisation should be able to build a strong team in which the manager can step away for a week, perhaps even two,” the psychological counsellor said.
Organisations should regularly reassess their development strategies, values and ability to maintain a motivating working environment. Employees, meanwhile, need to preserve a balance between professional commitments and their personal lives.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
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