Boss banned workers' ‘burnout’ complaints for hurting company vibe and it backfired spectacularly
A company that constantly preached 'self-care' and 'transparency ' ended up punishing an employee for doing exactly that.
A Reddit user, who goes by u/insiderecess, shared a story on October 23 that illustrates how ignoring burnout can drain a company's bank. The post, which gained 23,000 upvotes in four days, described how their employer’s attempt to control workplace morale ended up backfiring completely. The employee said their industry is known for "high turnover and high burnout." To address that, management often encouraged staff to be open about self-care, time off, and stress levels, but when the employee actually took them at their word, things didn’t go as expected.
"Last year, my work began to suffer. I was struggling, losing two close family members suddenly, and was transparent in hopes they would understand why I was withdrawn and had lower productivity," they wrote. Instead of showing understanding, the manager wrote them up for "using 1:1s inappropriately," claiming their discussions about grief and burnout were "causing stress among the team." The write-up even listed every record from their one-on-one meetings where they had asked for help. According to the employee, "management instructed me to stop talking about burnout," so they did.
"I stopped bringing up burnout, being transparent, and asking for support," the employee wrote. "About two months later, I requested a seven-week leave of absence, citing extreme burnout and mental health issues. Management was shocked and angry that I did not tell them I was struggling or burning out." The employee handed over the earlier write-up and reminded them, "The action plan I received stated I could not talk about burnout anymore." According to the post, management was later reprimanded for creating a "hostile work environment" that prevented staff from asking for help.
The employee was granted seven weeks off with partial pay, and the company had to cover their work for the entire time. The story is a clear example of how much it matters to feel genuinely heard at work. Workplaces often promise openness, but that promise only holds when people actually feel safe and heard. In fact, a 2022 peer-reviewed study in Health Care Management Review surveyed emergency department staff (analytic N = 241) and found that both psychological safety (believing you can speak up) and feeling heard were associated with lower burnout, and that 'feeling heard' mediated the link between psychological safety and burnout.
The post sparked an intense conversation among readers who faced similar retaliation for discussing mental health at work. u/3lm1Ster wrote, "The first time you said anything about burnout or losing family members, you should have been given information on reaching out to your company’s EAP. As a manager, I don’t want details. But I do have to have enough compassion and empathy to realize you are struggling and need someone to talk to."
u/naughtykaspa commented, "Went through this. Told about burnout, took leave, came back, and went straight onto a PIP for months, and then ended up quitting. Took me 12 months to find another permanent job. Up there with the worst 18 months of my life." u/AltruisticGazelle457 added, "I did this, took STD for stress and burnout, and the week I returned to the office, maybe three days in, I was let go due to lack of funding. LOL, surprise surprise, my job was posted a week later on Indeed." u/Ok-Tomato257 warned, "Sounds like the company is scared of you leaving and making a constructive dismissal claim against them. Document everything and don’t keep your records at work. Best of luck."
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