Addressing Burnout in Financial Services – How HR Can Tackle the Rising Risk in 2025

Burnout is not new, but the intensity of pressures across financial services roles continues to be a recurring problem. According to Deloitte, poor mental health already costs UK employers up to £56 billion a year, with financial services ranked among the hardest-hit industries. In a sector built on precision, compliance, and trust, the impact of burnout goes beyond individual wellbeing. It can expose firms to operational disruption, reputational risk, and talent drain.  

Key drivers of finance burnout: 

Relentless workloads and long hours: Roles in banking and insurance often involve long shifts with little downtime between reporting cycles or client deadlines. The pressure to deliver at speed, with minimal room for error, fuels chronic stress. 

Hybrid working challenges: While flexible work patterns were initially seen as a positive shift, hybrid and remote models have blurred the boundaries between work and rest. Employees are “always on,” leading to unhealthy work-life integration. 

Generational differences: Younger employees in finance are more likely to report burnout symptoms but are often reluctant to seek support, fearing stigma or career repercussions. 

Regulatory complexity: Every year brings new compliance obligations, from ESG reporting to stricter anti-money laundering (AML) rules. This adds layers of stress to already pressurised teams. 

Burnout can be subtle at first. HR leaders need to help managers distinguish between short-term fatigue and chronic issues that undermine employee performance and wellbeing.

Emotional and physical exhaustion

Employees experiencing emotional and physical exhaustion often show signs of persistent fatigue and disengagement. This can manifest as reduced productivity, increased absenteeism through sick days, or presenteeism. Presenteeism is where individuals continue working despite feeling unwell but deliver below-par performance. To learn more about absenteeism and discover strategies to help reduce it, read our guide on ‘7 Ways To Effectively Reduce Absenteeism in the Workplace’.

Cynicism and detachment

A loss of motivation is common, especially in high-pressure roles such as client-facing or compliance-heavy positions. Employees may begin to express cynicism, resist change initiatives, or display negative attitudes toward leadership, signalling a deeper disconnect from the organisation’s values and goals.

Declining performance

When engagement drops, performance often follows. This can lead to errors in reporting, missed deadlines, and reduced collaboration. All of these issues can carry significant compliance and operational risks. Exhausted employees tend to retreat into survival mode, limiting their capacity for innovation and teamwork.
In financial services, these warning signs don’t just impact individual wellbeing. They directly increase organisational risks, from regulatory breaches to reputational damage.

While burnout spans the entire financial services ecosystem, the banking sector is under uniquely intense pressure. 

1. High-stakes environments - Banking professionals operate in contexts where small mistakes can lead to significant financial loss or compliance breaches. The margin for error is almost non-existent. 
2. Regulatory scrutiny - Banks face ongoing oversight from bodies like the FCA, PRA, and ECB. The constant pressure of regulatory audits creates a culture of perfectionism. 
3. Cultural norms that reward overwork - Despite growing awareness of wellbeing, many banking teams still equate long hours with high performance. Vulnerability is discouraged, and taking time off is sometimes viewed as a lack of commitment. 

The Wall Street Oasis 2022 Work Conditions Survey found that across 485 bankers globally, average weekly hours were around 78 hours, with 14% working 91 or more hours per week; 4% also averaged over 101 hours.

This culture makes burnout in banking sector roles especially acute and requires HR leaders to push for deeper cultural and structural change.

Tackling burnout requires more than surface-level wellbeing initiatives. Successful organisations adopt data-led, cultural, and structural strategies, often enabled by advanced HR technology.

Use data to identify burnout risks early

Data is one of HR’s most powerful tools. By tracking and analysing workforce trends, leaders can identify burnout risks before they escalate. 

• Absence and overtime tracking: Monitoring unplanned absences and consistent overtime highlights pressure points in teams. 
• Engagement surveys: Regular pulse surveys and eNPS (Employee Net Promoter Score) scores provide a real-time picture of team sentiment. 
• Predictive analytics: Advanced HR software can flag burnout hotspots by cross-referencing absenteeism, workload spikes, and engagement dips.

To make this process easier and more effective, our Employee Engagement Survey Template offers a ready-to-use framework that helps you gather meaningful insights, spot early signs of disengagement, and foster a culture of continuous improvement.

Train leaders to spot and respond to burnout

Line managers are often the first to see signs of burnout but may not have the skills to intervene effectively.

• Manager training: Equip leaders with tools to recognise emotional exhaustion, detachment, and performance decline.
• Psychological safety: Encourage regular check-ins where employees feel comfortable sharing concerns without judgement.
• Leadership development: Ensure emotional intelligence and wellbeing literacy are embedded into leadership programmes.

Gartner reports that when managers create a psychologically safe environment, teams experience up to a 46% reduction in change fatigue, which includes apathy, burnout, and frustration.

Embed wellbeing into the employee experience

Employees see through one-off initiatives.

“When employees can easily discover and choose benefits that address their whole wellbeing picture, you create a virtuous cycle. And the ROI is proven — every £1 spent on effective benefits saves £7–15 in turnover costs. For that 500-employee business, just a 10% reduction in turnover delivers £1.33 million in net ROI. We've seen EAP engagement jump from 16% to 39% when employees can actually find and use these services easily.

This is how you become an employer of choice. Healthier, less financially stressed, mentally supported employees are happier employees. Happy employees are more productive, more engaged, and become your best advocates for attracting new talent.”
Emma Parkin, Head of Proposition, Beyond the Payslip

True resilience requires HR to embed wellbeing into every stage of the employee lifecycle.

• Flexible working with support: Beyond policies, HR leaders must ensure senior leaders model healthy work-life boundaries.
• Access to wellbeing resources: HR software can centralise access to EAPs (Employee Assistance Programmes), mental health services, and financial wellbeing tools.
• Peer networks: Encourage cross-team connections that reduce isolation, particularly in hybrid environments.

Introduce targeted training support – For instance, the “Avoiding Burnout – Recognise and handle the signs of mental burnout” eLearning course offers accredited, expert-designed microlearning that helps both employees and organisations reduce sick days and manage the early stages of burnout. The course covers: understanding burnout, spotting the first warning signs, exploring techniques to prevent burnout, and practical actions for both home and workplace settings. It’s optimised for mobile and tablet, ensuring that staff can engage with the content anytime, anywhere.

Redesign roles and workloads

Burnout often stems from structural issues in job design, not just personal resilience.

• Workload audits: Regularly review whether job expectations are realistic and sustainable.
• Cross-functional collaboration: Encourage teams to share responsibilities and reduce silos.
• Outcome-based recognition: Reward quality and results rather than hours worked.

Creating a burnout-resilient workforce means aligning wellbeing initiatives with business risk frameworks. For HR leaders, this involves:

• Data-led decision-making: Embedding predictive analytics into workforce planning.
• Manager enablement: Training leaders to be proactive in supporting wellbeing.
• Cultural alignment: Shaping a culture where performance and wellbeing are mutually reinforcing.
• Continuous improvement: Auditing wellbeing practices regularly and adapting to evolving challenges.

At its core, resilience in finance is about building systems where employees can perform at their best without sacrificing health. When HR embeds wellbeing as part of business strategy, firms not only reduce burnout but also strengthen compliance, innovation, and long-term employee retention.

Finance burnout is not inevitable. By using data to spot risks early, equipping leaders to respond, embedding wellbeing into the employee experience, and redesigning roles, HR can create a sustainable future for financial services workforces.

The organisations that succeed will be those that move beyond reactive initiatives to systemic, technology-enabled strategies.

With an integrated HR software suite like Access PeopleXD Evo, you can:

• Track burnout risk in real time through integrated analytics.
• Empower managers with wellbeing and performance insights.
• Centralise access to wellbeing resources and EAPs.
• Streamline workload distribution with workforce management tools.

Burnout in finance is a consistent issue, but HR leaders have the tools to turn the tide. Now is the time to audit your practices, invest in data-led solutions, and build a culture where high performance and wellbeing can thrive side by side.

Discover how Access PeopleXD Evo can help your HR team reduce burnout risks, improve employee engagement, and deliver sustainable performance across financial services.