U.S. worker burnout surges as employer trust collapses, Aflac reports

GEORGIA, UNITED STATES — The Aflac WorkForces Report reveals 72% of U.S. employees are significantly stressed, driven by heavy workloads and anxiety over health care costs. 

This escalating burnout crisis is marked by a sharp decline in worker confidence that their employers care about their mental well-being, with trust plummeting in just one year.

“New Aflac WorkForces Report data around the prevalence of stress and burnout should raise a red flag and is certainly a matter that requires attention,” noted Matthew Owenby, Chief Strategy Officer of Aflac.

Burnout and stress reach record highs

In its 15th edition, the report surveyed 1,002 United States employers and 2,000 employees online in the spring of 2025 to examine evolving benefits trends. The study, conducted by the research firm Kantar, captures the perspectives of both companies and their workers through separate surveys fielded between April and May. 

The study finds that this escalating crisis is marked by a notable decline in employee confidence that their employers care about their mental well-being.

This culture has caused a massive loss of trust, with fewer than 48% of the employees being assured that their employers are concerned about their mental health, which is a drastic change in just one year, since 54% of employees believed the same thing last year. This is an indication of an acute mismatch between the requirements of the workforce and the organizational support systems. 

This burnout does not have a homogeneous distribution between generations, unveiling a demographic terrain of occupational pressure. Gen Z has now become the most burned-out generation, with 74% stating that they experience moderate or greater burnout, which is in comparison to 66% of millennials. 

According to Owenby, it is imperative to break this cycle by having employers review the workload of employees on and off shift, walking that fine line. 

“Developing a broader understanding of what is driving stress can support the creation of programs that alleviate burnout, which, in turn, can deliver a higher level of productivity,” Owenby notes.

Rising medical costs fuel financial strain

Compounding workplace stress is a pervasive sense of financial fragility among employees, largely centered on the fear of being unable to manage medical expenses. 

Fifty-two percent of employees report feeling anxious about health care costs not covered by their insurance, a phenomenon the report terms “medanxiety.” 

This anxiety is most acute for Gen Z, rising to 61%, and is also on the rise for baby boomers. The financial vulnerability is stark, with 44% of all employees—and 54% of African American employees—saying they could not pay $1,000 in out-of-pocket costs for an unexpected medical event.

Such medical cost anxiety is leading to poor health choices and is encouraged by a general misconception of the actual price of care. 

Forty-five percent of the employees have postponed medical treatment due to their inability to pay, and 40% of the employees are uncertain whether their insurance covers the medical treatment. There is a fall in the number of employees who are confident about their health cover in case of a big health event to 58%. 

Costs are dramatically underestimated; 72% of workers think that one year of cancer treatment would cost less than $2,000 out of pocket. Such a disconnection between reality and perception forms a potential financial menace to the American worker.

Belonging emerges as key to fixing burnout crisis

This surge in burnout, fueled by unsustainable workloads and a pervasive anxiety that is eroding employee trust and prompting deferred medical care, suggests a systemic failure in corporate support that now threatens to undermine both worker well-being and productivity.

Hence, providing more robust and clearly communicated benefits to directly address the financial anxieties and burnout that are compounding the workplace strain is needed.

“Employees’ sense of belonging influences how they feel about their roles, colleagues, and organization as a whole,” Owenby emphasized. 

“We should all take note and explore ways to build cultures that genuinely support opportunities for a more engaged workforce — one that is grounded in purpose and value. Belonging is a powerful driver of employee well-being.”