Nine in 10 charity workers have felt stress, overwhelm or burnout over the past year, survey shows

Posted on: January 21, 2021

Research conducted by Third Sector shows that 90 per cent of respondents have taken on extra work as the sector tackles the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.

More than nine out of 10 charity workers say they have felt stress, overwhelm or burnout over the past year, research conducted by Third Sector shows.

The survey of more than 350 charity workers also found that 90 per cent of respondents said they had taken on extra hours or more work during the period.

The survey found that 94.3 per cent, the majority of whom held managerial positions, said they had experienced stress, overwhelm or burnout over the past year.

Asked to identify the main causes of those feelings, 80.6 per cent identified the Covid-19 crisis, while almost two-thirds said it was poor work-life balance.

Funding concerns was identified as a reason for stress by 40 per cent of participants, while poor organisational culture was chosen by 38.4 per cent.

Slightly more than one-quarter said job insecurity was a cause of stress (respondents could choose more than one answer).

Responding to another question, almost three-quarters of participants said they had felt pressured to take on more work to achieve their organisation’s aims; 21.3 per said they had not.

The remainder answered “other” or said it was not applicable to them.

More than four-fifths of respondents said they were more likely to put themselves in situations that led to stress, burnout or feelings of mental exhaustion if their charity’s cause area or service users were going through a crisis.

While the majority of respondents said they were comfortable discussing stress, burnout or mental health concerns with their line manager, almost a third said they were uncomfortable with this.

The latest edition of Third Sector contains an in-depth article on the subject of mental health and wellbeing, which can be found here.

Author: Steering Member
Posted:
Categories: News

Leave a Reply

Related Posts

Compassionate Businesses Network – Northeast Essex

When: Wednesday 23rd April: 8:30am – 10:30am Location: Innovation Centre, Knowledge Gateway, University of Essex After a sell-out at our launch event in Feb, the Compassionate Businesses Network is thrilled to invite you to this next space for inspiring leadership, purposeful networking, and community-driven ideas. Join fellow forward-thinking professionals from across North East Essex to connect, collaborate and
Read more…

Read more...

Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) place-based support work

We are pleased to share some information about the Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) place-based support work that Active Essex are leading on behalf of the Essex County Council Strengthening Communities Team. This work will be identifying what success looks like for the VCS at place, recognising the ambitions of local VCS organisations, the expertise
Read more…

Read more...

Less than one week to respond to the UK Government’s consultation on the proposed formation of a Mayoral Combined County Authority for Essex, Southend-on-Sea and Thurrock.

There is now less than one week remaining to respond to the UK Government’s consultation on the proposed formation of a Mayoral Combined County Authority for Essex, Southend-on-Sea and Thurrock. While the proposed devolution deal could bring significant benefits such as greater local control over funding and decision-making in areas like skills, transport, and business
Read more…

Read more...