Burnout, Lack of Flexible Work Driving Working Women Away from Employers

The latest Deloitte report, “Women @ Work 2022: A Global Outlook,” finds that burnout and the absence of flexible work still hinder initiatives to support working women. The study shows that 53% of women reported their stress levels are higher than a year ago, and almost 50% felt burned out. The survey covered the views of 5,000 working women in 10 countries.  

The Study and the Statistics

Burnout and limited advancement opportunities are among the top factors that compel women to stay away from their employers. Nearly 40% of women actively looking for a new employer said these were the main reasons they did not want to return to their old jobs. More than half of the women surveyed wanted to leave their employer in the next two years, and only 10% plan to stay with their current employer for more than five years.  

Reasons Why Working Women Away from Employers?

The study found disturbing long-term impacts as rates of stress and harassment of women at the workplace or microaggressions remain high. It also throws light on worrying findings of the “new normal” of work. Wherein nearly 60% of women working in hybrid models reported they have already felt excluded.  

Emma Codd, Deloitte Global Inclusion Leader, said, “Although many employers have implemented new ways of working designed to improve flexibility, our research shows that the new arrangements run the risk of excluding the very people who could most benefit from them. Most of the women we polled said they experienced exclusion when working in a hybrid environment.”  

“The number of women reporting increased stress and burnout is of significant concern, and employers struggle to address them, as burnout is the top driver for women currently looking for new employment. This research shows the importance of actions beyond policy — those that truly address and embed well-being, flexibility, and a respectful and inclusive ‘everyday culture’,” she added.  

The survey reveals that 53% of women said their stress levels were higher than a year ago, and nearly half felt burned out. In addition, almost 50% of the women surveyed rated their mental health as poor/very poor. One-third have taken time off work because of mental health challenges. Yet only 43% felt comfortable talking about mental health concerns in the workplace.  

The number of women looking for new jobs has increased since last year’s survey. And 10% of women said they were actively looking. Forty percent of that group said burnout is the top reason driving them away from their current employers. Twenty-two percent of women, who had already left an employer since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, cited a lack of opportunities to advance as a reason for leaving their jobs.  

When it comes to the future, the outlook is bleak for employers. 50% plus women plan to leave their employers within 2 years. This trend is more distinct among women in middle-management and non-managerial roles. Less than 25% of women in those roles plan to stay with their employer for more than two years. Only 10% of women surveyed plan to stay with their current employer for more than five years.  

Workplace Problems  

While many organizations have transformed workplace strategies to incorporate flexible and hybrid work models over the past year, many women said they are yet to feel the benefits of these new ways of working. Only 33% of women said their employers offer flexible-working policies. When asked about policies their organization had introduced during the pandemic, only 22% cited flexibility around the work. Moreover, 94% of respondents believed that requesting flexible work will affect their likelihood of promotion.  

Aside from flexibility, the implementation of hybrid work has presented additional challenges. Nearly 60% of women working in hybrid environments felt excluded from crucial meetings. Rest 45% said they do not have enough exposure to leaders. Hybrid work does not deliver the expectedness that women with caregiving responsibilities may need. Only 26% said their employers had set clear expectations regarding how and where they are expected to work.  

The survey also found that women working in a hybrid environment are more likely to report experiencing microaggressions than those working exclusively on-site or exclusively remote. The percentage of women that experienced non-inclusive behaviors over the past year at work has increased. And it has increased from 52% in 2021 to 59% in 2022. While half of the respondents said they had experienced microaggressions, 14% have experienced harassment. Women are still afraid of career reprisals when reporting non-inclusive behaviors. Because 93% believed reporting non-inclusive behaviors would harm their careers. Only 23% of microaggressions were reported to employers, compared to 66% of harassment behaviors reports.