When the HR team starts burning out: Gen Z is raising the red flag

This week in workplace whiplash 🌀

The workplace headlines have been busy again, here’s what’s making HR professionals twitch, trend, and tactically mute their notifications:

• 📉 Absenteeism in HR hits a new high
  Gen Z HR pros top the charts for absenteeism, sparking fresh concerns about burnout in the very teams meant to prevent it.
  👉 HR Magazine

• 🎥 Workplace surveillance is getting personal
  New research shows Black employees in the UK are disproportionately monitored, and trust is eroding fast.
  👉 HR Magazine

• 📞 Contacting sick staff? HR is getting nervous
  Fear of being labelled a bully is stopping HR leaders from checking in on absent employees.
  👉 The Times

• 🤖 Can AI and empathy coexist in HR?
  As automation creeps into people ops, experts warn HR mustn’t outsource the human touch.
  👉 London Daily News

And while HR is navigating all that... it turns out the youngest voices in the room might be the ones calling time on burnout culture 👇

A friend in HR recently told me she’s stopped engaging with the wellbeing programme she helped design. “It feels ridiculous promoting resilience when I can’t even open my laptop without dreading what’s inside,” she said.

New data suggests the sector best known for managing burnout is now drowning in it. A recent report by Employment Hero found that the HR profession has the highest absenteeism rates of any industry. And leading the charge? Gen Z HR professionals.

Sure, some of it might be winter bugs, but that doesn’t explain the spike. Something deeper is going on, and Gen Z is calling it out.

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🧠 The (HR) people are not okay

HR isn’t known for slow days, especially in recent times. Between restructures, exit interviews, employee burnout, and back-to-back crisis calls, the ‘people function’ has become the emotional load-bearing wall of most organisations.

It’s no wonder Gen Z, often new and lower down the ranks, are feeling it hard. They’ve entered the profession at a time when burnout isn’t just a risk. It’s baked into the system.

One UK-wide survey found that 30% of Gen Z workers had taken time off due to stress or mental health concerns last year.

📱 From Slack fatigue to silent strikes

What’s different now is how Gen Z is responding.

Unlike previous generations who might have pushed through, Gen Z HR professionals are drawing boundaries early, and they’re not hiding it. Business Insider found that many young professionals now see mental health days as essential for protecting long-term performance, not a sign of slacking off.

It’s not just about shifting attitudes, it’s a need to challenge outdated norms. And the message is clear: if the job is costing their wellbeing, they’ll step back.

🧘‍♀️ Mindfulness will only get you so far

There’s nothing wrong with a meditation app, but it’s not going to fix a toxic workload or a manager who doesn’t respect out-of-office boundaries.

It’s not about perks. It’s about culture, expectations, and systems. A Deloitte report shows that Gen Z values mental health support, but also wants real change: manageable workloads, flexible hours, and psychologically safe environments.

If your HR wellbeing strategy still revolves around smoothie vouchers and yoga Wednesdays, you’re not solving the problem. You’re wallpapering over it.

🚨 What needs to change (Hint: It’s not Gen Z)

If your HR team is showing the earliest signs of collapse, that’s not a Gen Z issue. That’s a leadership one. And the good news? There are things you can do right now:

• Start with workload, not wellness. Look at the volume and complexity of what your HR team is carrying. Then reduce it.
  → See: Mental Health Foundation’s employer checklist

• Normalise boundaries for junior staff. Many Gen Z professionals feel pressure to constantly be available, especially in hybrid settings. Make it clear that logging off on time isn’t a weakness. It’s the expectation.
  → See: CIPD guidance on hybrid working and wellbeing

• Don’t just “listen” – act. If you’re asking your HR team for pulse checks and wellbeing feedback, be prepared to do something with what you learn. Gen Z will notice if it's just for show.

• Put HR on the wellbeing map. Too often, HR delivers mental health initiatives without receiving them. That has to change. Support structures for frontline HR staff should be as robust as those for any high-stress function.
  → See: Business in the Community’s Mental Health Toolkit

Final thought

Gen Z HR professionals aren’t flaking, they’re flagging what’s broken.

And if the people who are supposed to be holding everyone else together are coming undone? It’s time to take notice.

If your culture’s burning out the people paid to care for everyone else, it’s time for less spin and more substance. Gen Z isn’t buying the wellness wallpaper.