By Sam Richardson

Burnout isn’t a new concept, but the reasons behind it are changing.

Just a few years back, work typically finished at 5pm. You would shut down your desktop computer, leave the office and, aside from an emergency phone call, you wouldn’t check emails or messages. Today the modern workplace is switched on 24-7 - a symptom of a so-called ‘ping crisis’.

From emails piling up inboxes and constant notifications on Teams to ‘quick questions’ that can’t wait until the morning, it’s all part of a workplace culture that feeds off employee responsiveness and constant communication.

As technology has quickly advanced, we’re now in a world where being reachable and immediately responsive is often expected of employees, not simply hoped for.

For many UK workers this ‘always-on’ pressure has blurred the lines between office, home, and everyday life.

Under 40s: the victims of Britain’s ‘hustle’ culture

While this digital overload is increasingly universal, it’s the under-40s who, having spent their entire careers with unbroken access to phones, the internet, and social media, are inching closer to burnout.

Recent Twilio research with YouGov found that 38% of UK workers feel pressured to be constantly online, while 40% say notifications actively disrupt their ability to focus.

However, this pressure........

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