Stress in the modern workplace: Predicting risks before they become claims

Workplace stress does not usually appear all at once or immediately result in an absence, a claim or a resignation. More often, it builds over time while an employee continues doing good work, meeting deadlines and showing up for the people who rely on them. From the outside, everything may seem fine, but there may be subtle changes taking place beneath the surface as the employee becomes more tired, less engaged or increasingly overwhelmed.

Those changes can show up in different ways. An employee may begin taking time off with less notice, arrive late to meetings when punctuality was never an issue or struggle with details they would normally manage without difficulty. Any one of these behaviors could have a simple explanation and should not lead to assumptions about someone’s mental health. When several changes emerge together, however, or when an employee begins behaving in a way that is noticeably different from their usual pattern, it may be a sign that additional support is needed.

For employers, predicting risk should not mean trying to determine which individual employee will develop a mental health condition. It should mean paying closer attention to patterns, creating opportunities for honest conversation and acting before workplace stress contributes to a prolonged absence, a disability claim, lost productivity or an employee deciding that leaving is their only option.

Recognizing the stage before burnout

A phrase that has recently entered the workplace conversation is “quiet cracking.” Like many workplace terms, it is a catchy way to describe something that has existed for a long time, but it can still be helpful because it gives employers a way to talk about the period before an employee reaches burnout.

Quiet cracking is different from quiet quitting. An employee who is quiet quitting may have already disengaged from the work, while someone experiencing quiet cracking is often still committed and performing at a relatively high level. In fact, this person may be one of the organization’s strongest employees, with a long history of taking on difficult assignments, helping colleagues and going beyond what is expected.

Over time, however, the pressure begins to show. I sometimes describe these employees as becoming “crispy around the edges” because they are still functioning and still producing good work, but they are no longer operating in quite the same way. Their attention to detail may slip slightly, assignments may take longer than usual or they may begin requesting time off tomorrow when they would normally plan it several weeks in advance.

The important thing for managers to watch for is not one particular behavior, but a change from the employee’s established pattern. One late meeting or unexpected absence does not mean someone is approaching burnout, since people have complicated lives and many reasons for having a difficult day. When a dependable employee begins showing several small but noticeable changes over time, it creates a reason to check in and better understand what may be happening.

Once burnout has fully developed, it can be much harder to address because the employee may need substantial changes to their workload, responsibilities, role or environment in order to recover. Employers therefore have a much better opportunity to make a difference when they recognize and respond to the earlier signs.

Using workforce data to identify emerging pressure

Managers are often the first people to notice that an employee seems different, but their observations are only one source of information. Workforce data can also help an organization understand where pressure may be building, particularly when employers look at trends across teams, locations or employee populations rather than focusing on isolated events.

Changes in unplanned absences, intermittent leave, PTO usage, overtime, turnover and disability activity can provide useful context. Employee engagement surveys and pulse surveys may reveal other patterns, such as growing exhaustion, declining morale or a sense that workloads have become difficult to manage. If a particular area is experiencing a steady increase in short term absences while also reporting staffing challenges and high overtime, those signals should be considered together rather than treated as unrelated issues.

Claims and absence information may also help employers understand whether mental health related absences are increasing, whether certain groups are staying out of work longer or whether particular teams appear to be experiencing greater strain. That information can point an employer toward areas that deserve more attention, although it cannot always explain what is causing the change.

This is why data needs human context. A dashboard may show that absences are rising within a department, but a conversation may reveal that the team has been operating with several open positions for months, that responsibilities have expanded or that employees have been working through a period of constant organizational change. Both pieces of information matter, and neither provides a complete picture on its own.

There also needs to be care around how this information is interpreted and used. The purpose is not to label individual employees as risks, make assumptions about a person’s health or attempt to diagnose someone based on attendance or performance data. The goal is to identify broader patterns, understand where workplace conditions may be contributing to stress and determine where additional support could prevent a more serious outcome.

Preparing managers to have better conversations

Managers are well positioned to make a positive difference because they see employees’ work habits, communication styles and day to day behavior. At the same time, many managers do not feel equipped to talk about emotional well-being, even when they recognize that someone may be struggling.

A manager may feel genuine concern but hesitate to say anything because they do not want to become too personal, make the employee uncomfortable or cross an appropriate professional boundary. Those concerns are understandable, but they can sometimes lead managers to avoid a conversation that could have been helpful.

The answer is not for managers to become therapists, since that is neither appropriate nor realistic. Managers can, however, learn to acknowledge that emotions exist in the workplace and become more comfortable approaching employees with curiosity, compassion and respect.

Sometimes a small change in the way a question is asked can open a different kind of conversation. When a manager asks, “How are you doing?” an employee may hear a question about tasks, deadlines or whether a project is on schedule. Asking, “How are you feeling?” communicates that the manager is interested in the person’s well-being and not only the status of the work.

The manager does not need to solve every concern the employee shares, nor should they attempt to diagnose the situation or become the employee’s counselor. Their role is to listen without judgment, understand whether there are workplace stressors they can address and connect the employee with an appropriate resource when additional support is needed.

Empathy is a skill, and although some people may express it more naturally than others, managers can become better at it through training and practice. They can learn how to ask thoughtful questions, listen to answers that may be difficult to hear and respond in a way that is supportive without overstepping their responsibilities.

Making practical flexibility part of prevention

Employers sometimes assume that supporting mental wellness requires a large program, a significant investment or a complete change in how the organization operates. Formal programs can certainly be valuable, but some of the most meaningful interventions are much simpler and can be managed at the team level.

A manager may be able to adjust an employee’s start time, allow an afternoon away from work or help the person attend to an important family responsibility. A team may need help reprioritizing deadlines when every assignment has been treated as urgent, while an employee who has not taken time away from work may need to hear clearly that using PTO is encouraged and will not be viewed as a lack of commitment.

Flexibility will not look the same in every work environment, and employers need to recognize the operational realities of different roles. A call center, field operation or shift based workplace will have different staffing and coverage requirements than an office team, so the options available to managers may be more limited or require additional planning.

Even in structured environments, however, there is often some room to consider reasonable adjustments. The question is not whether every employee can have complete control over their schedule, but whether the organization is willing to look for practical flexibility within the requirements of the job. Small adjustments can go a long way because they communicate that employees are expected to have lives outside of work and that those lives have value.

Treating resilience as a shared responsibility

Resilience is another term that appears frequently in conversations about workplace stress. There is value in helping employees develop coping skills, prepare for difficult situations and build confidence in their ability to manage adversity, but resilience becomes problematic when it is treated entirely as the employee’s responsibility.

It is not reasonable for an organization to maintain an unsustainable workload and then tell employees they need to become better at handling stress. That approach places the full burden on individuals while ignoring the workplace conditions that may be contributing to the problem.

Workplaces, teams and cultures can also be resilient, and that kind of resilience is built when people support one another, managers pay attention to workload and leaders recognize that healthy boundaries are necessary. Employers should consider whether expectations are manageable, whether employees feel safe speaking up, whether managers can adjust priorities as circumstances change and whether meaningful resources are available before someone reaches a crisis.

Employees have a role in communicating their needs, setting reasonable boundaries and using the resources available to them. Employers have an equally important role in creating an environment where that communication is possible and where asking for help does not feel like a professional risk. Supporting resilience is a shared responsibility, and it works best when both sides understand their part.

Turning early insight into meaningful support

At Sedgwick, part of our work is helping bring mental wellness issues into view and helping employers and managers understand the role they can play in addressing them. Claims and absence information may provide one part of the picture, while behavioral health expertise, manager observations and direct human conversations provide additional context.

When employers consider these elements together, they can begin moving from reacting to an absence or claim toward asking earlier and more useful questions. They can examine where pressure is increasing, what may have changed within the work environment, whether managers are prepared to respond and what forms of flexibility or support may be appropriate.

No organization will identify every concern before it becomes more serious, because people are different, personal circumstances are complex and not every employee will feel comfortable sharing what they are experiencing. Employers do not need perfect information, however, to take meaningful action.

They can pay closer attention to changes in workforce patterns, prepare managers to recognize concerns and respond with empathy, examine workloads and expectations honestly, and make it easier for employees to access support before they reach a breaking point. This can help protect employee well-being while also reducing the business consequences associated with avoidable absence, lost productivity, prolonged claims and turnover.

Prevention begins well before a claim is filed. It begins when employers notice that something has changed, take the time to understand what may be happening and create another path forward while there is still an opportunity to help.