Staff might no longer be unhappy at work today, but if bosses aren’t careful, they might still see a rise in employee turnover levels.

The main reason? Employee burnout.

According to a new study from Staples Advantage and WorkplaceTrends.com, an overwhelming majority (86%) of staff are happy at work and motivated to rise in their organisation.

This was despite the fact that more than half of employees (53%) in the survey reported feeling overworked and burnt out.

Polling  2,602 employees across America and Canada, the survey added that this burnout was occurring due to longer days and constant connection to work.

Employees reported they are working longer days, and about a quarter of them regularly work after the standard workday is done.

Furthermore, about four out of 10 said they worked on weekends at least once a month. Breaks are becoming rare as well – about half of employees feel like they cannot get up for a break at all, and just under half eat lunch at their desk.

Additionally, almost four out of 10 employees acknowledged that burnout is a motivator for a new job search.

The biggest factors leading to burnout included workload (53%), personal pressures employees put on themselves to perform (41%) and time pressures (40%).

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“With the rise of the mobile workforce and the resulting ‘always on’ work culture, it’s not a surprise that employees are feeling overworked and burnt out,” said Dan Schawbel, founder of WorkplaceTrends.com

“While many are still happy at work, we have to ask whether it’s because they’re truly inspired and motivated, or simply conditioned to the new reality? Either way, employers need to retain talent and optimise productivity, engagement and loyalty with employees.”

Indeed, the survey found that flexibility remains key if bosses want to retain their employees.

Though employees are happy, about one in five employees still expects to change jobs in the next twelve months. This flight risk was slightly higher for Millennials.

“With employees working longer days and on weekends, the biggest request for employers is to provide more flexibility,” the report stated.

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