IT employees are more at risk of burnout from overwork than people employed in most other professions, according to a survey from recruitment firm Hudson UK.
Almost 60% of people working in the IT departments of companies and technology suppliers said that they had experienced at least one symptom of burnout in the past six months.
Of those working in the public sector, 63% reported one or more symptoms of overwork. This compares to 52% of financial services employees and 58% of retail workers.
Hudson UK surveyed 500 employees and employers from across the UK to discover whether employers’ perceptions of burnout differed from employees’ experiences.
IT employees rated increased competition and the need for services to be available 24/7 as more likely to cause burnout than their employers did.
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While 93% of employers believed burnout was a real problem in workplaces, only 24% said that it existed in their own businesses. By contrast, 59% of employees said staff in their companies suffered from burnout.
Hudson UK’s director of technology, Paul Taylor, said, “I think most employers are in denial. A lot of the pressure that is specific to IT staff is down to that constant pressure to get the job done on time.”
