UK workers link burnout to pressure to stay available
HiBob survey data points to retention risks as UK staff and managers report rising pressure, weaker boundaries and concern over sustainable performance.
By Sofia Marchetti · World Affairs Correspondent
3 min read
HiBob has released UK survey findings that frame workplace burnout as a management and performance-design problem, rather than a failure of individual time management. The HR platform’s data suggests employers face retention and productivity risks as workers feel pushed to remain reachable outside normal hours.
The research, carried out by Censuswide in May 2026, covered 2,000 UK workers and 501 UK white-collar managers at companies that use AI. It found that 58% of workers believe pressure in their role has risen compared with two years ago, while 49% feel expected to be available for work at all times.
That pressure is feeding directly into job risk. According to HiBob, 42% of workers are actively thinking about leaving because of workplace pressure, and another 11% are already looking for a new role. More than a third, 37%, said they would take a pay cut for a less stressful job.
The figures point to a problem for employers that goes beyond wellbeing programmes. In digital and hybrid workplaces, quick replies can become a visible stand-in for output, especially where teams lack clear measures of performance. That can leave staff unclear about whether they are being judged on results or responsiveness.
HiBob’s survey found that 36% of workers regularly work late. More than a quarter, 27%, believe ignoring messages outside working hours would damage their career prospects.
Work is also intruding into personal time. The survey found 42% of workers check work messages during conversations, 41% do so in the bathroom and 29% have checked them while on a date. Nearly half, 47%, said there is no longer a clear quiet period at work, while 51% said they have less recovery time between busy spells than they used to.
The reported health effects are material for employers trying to hold on to staff and sustain output. Nearly half of workers, 47%, said they feel mentally exhausted at the end of most working days, 41% said work harms their sleep, and 33% described their current job as unsustainable over the long term.
Managers appear to be under similar strain. Among managers surveyed, 76% said pressure on their team has increased over two years, and 72% feel pressure from senior leaders to keep performance high. More than half, 54%, said they struggle to balance performance demands with employee wellbeing.
The manager data also suggests middle management is absorbing strain from both directions. HiBob found that 36% of managers have taken on extra work to reduce pressure on their teams, while 87% feel responsible for shielding employees from excessive pressure. A further 51% said they feel underprepared to handle the scale of the challenge, and 68% said clearer guidance would help them manage high-performing teams in the current work environment.
Toby Hough, HiBob’s VP of people and culture for EMEA, said the findings show a widening gap between faster, more connected work and the way organisations design roles and measure performance. He argued that businesses need to shift attention from visible activity to impact, and decide more clearly what work should be done, by whom and in what way.
The announcement sits in the HR technology market’s broader push to give employers more real-time workforce data. HiBob positions its platform as a tool for leaders seeking better visibility over pressure, performance and talent deployment; its UK workforce burnout research is being used to argue that constant connectivity can weaken, rather than support, long-term productivity.