The toll of the pandemic and remote working has been measured in new research with three-quarters of the UK experiencing burnout over the last year.
A new study commissioned by Asana, a work management tool, has revealed the trends in the remote working, COVID-19 world. As part of this, levels of burnout, time wasted and imposter syndrome were measured and shows how each was impacted during 2020.
On the whole, British employees reported higher levels of burnout in comparison to global figures. Three-quarters of UK workers (75 per cent) reported suffering with burnout in 2020 which was up from a global average of 71 per cent.
In addition, almost nine in 10 UK based workers (86 per cent) reported working later each day by an average of one hour and 46 minutes, totalling almost 10 hours of overtime during the working week. This was a marginal increase in 2019 figures which showed that 78 per cent of UK employees worked overtime each day.
Due to the phenomenon of online video calls and the need to stay connected, the level of unnecessary or pointless work has substantially increased.
According to the data, increased volume of unnecessary video calls and meetings has led to three hours and 17 minutes to be wasted each week – just under half of an average full-time UK employee’s work-day.
In addition, the average UK worker was found to have spent four hours and 46 minutes spending time on duplicated work each week. This was due to employees completing a task that another colleague had already finished, unknown to the original worker.
Worryingly, another factor which has also seen a substantial rise is the Imposter Syndrome, a psychological pattern in which an employee doubts their own skills or abilities. Whilst the global average was under two-thirds (62 per cent) for employees experiencing Imposter Syndrome, almost seven in 10 (69 per cent) of UK employees felt this way.
Significantly impacted were those who had started their job during the pandemic with over eight in 10 (84 per cent) reporting feeling Imposter Syndrome. Nearly half of all UK employees overall (45 per cent) claimed that 2020 and remote working worsened the feeling of Imposter Syndrome.
Simon O’Kane, Asana Head of EMEA, commented:
Our latest research illustrates the increased levels of imposter syndrome, anxiety and burnout many British office workers are currently experiencing.
With a third lockdown in place, and many now facing the prospect of more remote working in the weeks and months ahead, never has it been more important for companies to not only look after the wellbeing of their staff, but also fully understand the unique challenges their employees may be facing.
*To obtain these results, Asana surveyed 13,000 employees globally for their Anatomy of Work 2021 Index.
Monica Sharma is an English Literature graduate from the University of Warwick. As Editor for HRreview, her particular interests in HR include issues concerning diversity, employment law and wellbeing in the workplace. Alongside this, she has written for student publications in both England and Canada. Monica has also presented her academic work concerning the relationship between legal systems, sexual harassment and racism at a university conference at the University of Western Ontario, Canada.
- Monica Sharma
- Monica Sharma
- Monica Sharma
- Monica Sharma
