Australian workplace stress statistics (2026 update)

If you're trying to build a business case for workplace wellness, you need numbers. Not overseas numbers. Not five-year-old numbers. Current, Australian, properly sourced numbers that will hold up in a boardroom.

Here's what the data says right now.

The headline numbers

Half of all Australian workers experienced burnout in the past year, according to a nationally representative Beyond Blue survey of 1,000 people conducted in June 2025. Workers aged 18-29 reported the highest rates, with inappropriate workload (49%), lack of management support (32%) and inflexible working conditions (21%) identified as the primary drivers. [1]

The TELUS Health Mental Health Barometer, drawing from five Australian monthly surveys across 2024 and early 2025, found that 41% of Australian workers face constant stress, with those under 40 impacted the most. More than one-third of the working population remains at high mental health risk. [2]

And from Gallup's 2025 State of the Global Workplace report, which surveyed over 150,000 workers across 140 countries: 49% of employees in Australia and New Zealand experienced significant stress the previous day, and only 20% of employees in our region are engaged at work. That's lower than the global average of 21%. [3]

How it's affecting work

Stress doesn't stay in people's heads. It shows up in sick days, productivity, retention and workers compensation claims.

The TELUS Health data found that 31% of Australian employees said their mental health was negatively impacting their productivity at work. Among younger workers it's worse: 46% of Gen Z and 39% of Millennials reported the same. Workers at the lowest end of the mental health scale are losing up to 69 productive workdays per year. [2]

Mental health claims now account for 12% of all serious workers compensation claims in Australia for the 2023-24 period, a nearly 15% increase over the prior year. The median time lost from work for these claims is almost five times higher than for all other injuries and diseases. [4]

And those claims aren't spread evenly. Work pressure accounts for 24.2% of mental health claims, harassment and workplace bullying for 33.2%, and exposure to violence and harassment for 15.7%. Together, those three categories make up more than half of all serious work-related mental health claims. [5]

What it's costing

The Australian Productivity Commission's inquiry into mental health estimated the total cost of mental ill-health and suicide to Australia at $200 to $220 billion per year. That includes $40 to $70 billion in direct economic costs such as healthcare, lost productivity through absenteeism and presenteeism, and informal care. The remaining $150 billion reflects the social and emotional costs of pain, suffering and premature death. [6]

Drilling into the workplace specifically: untreated mental health conditions cost Australian workplaces approximately $10.9 billion per year, broken down as $4.7 billion in absenteeism, $6.1 billion in presenteeism and $146 million in compensation claims, according to research from PwC and Beyond Blue. [7]

Presenteeism alone, where employees are physically at work but not functioning at capacity, costs the Australian economy an estimated $34 billion per year. [8]

Safe Work Australia's research on psychosocial safety climate estimates the cost of low organisational psychosocial safety to Australian employers at approximately $6 billion per year, with a further $6.3 billion attributed to depression-related presenteeism and absenteeism. [9]

What workers are saying (and not saying)

Beyond Blue found that one in three workers don't feel they can talk to their manager about feeling burnt out. The reasons vary: fear of negative consequences for their job or promotion, not wanting to be seen as weak or incapable, or simply wanting to handle it privately. Nearly one in two people who experience burnout don't seek professional support for it. [1]

The people2people Recruitment survey of 783 Australian workers in early 2025 found that 90% believe burnout is ignored until it becomes critical. Over half say the warning signs are identified too late, while 39% believe they're outright ignored. Two in five employees entered 2025 already feeling burnt out. [10]

A Robert Half survey of 1,000 full-time Australian office workers found that four in five were experiencing some level of burnout: just under 60% feeling a little burnt out, under 20% very burnt out, and over 5% completely burnt out. Just under a quarter hadn't told their manager. [11]

And from TELUS Health: 45% of workers in Australia lack trusted workplace relationships, leading to feelings of isolation and loneliness even when social interaction exists. Nearly 40% say their employer either doesn't support or they're unsure whether their employer supports psychological health and safety in the workplace. [12]

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Who's feeling it most

The data consistently shows younger workers and women carrying a disproportionate load.

Beyond Blue's survey found workers aged 18-29 experience the highest rates of burnout. [1] The Robert Half data showed over 85% of Gen Z workers experiencing burnout, compared with 81% of Millennials and Gen Xers, and just over 70% of Baby Boomers. [11]

The TELUS Health Barometer found that men in Australia are 50% more likely than women to report no personal stress. The mental health score of women at the start of 2025 was 1.8 points lower than men. [2]

HR professionals themselves aren't immune. An Inside Small Business report found 76% of HR professionals report high stress and declining mental health, 59% say their job is now "much more difficult" due to company-wide stress, and 73% are considering leaving the HR profession entirely. [13]

The regulatory shift

This isn't just a wellbeing conversation anymore. It's a compliance one.

Safe Work Australia's model Code of Practice on managing psychosocial hazards now treats psychosocial risks with the same seriousness as physical hazards. Victoria's Occupational Health and Safety (Psychological Health) Regulations 2025 came into effect on 1 December 2025, requiring employers to identify psychosocial hazards and eliminate or reduce associated risks so far as is reasonably practicable. [14]

Every other state and territory already has psychosocial hazard regulations in place. The direction is clear: managing workplace stress is no longer optional.

What the return on investment looks like

For every $1 invested in workplace mental health, Australian research shows an average return of $2.30, according to the Productivity Commission. The Commission estimated that implementing its recommended reforms would deliver up to $18 billion in benefits per year, mainly from improvements to quality of life, plus a further $1.3 billion from increased economic participation. [6]

Comcare's research on workplace wellness programs found reductions in sick leave of 25.3%, workers compensation cost reductions of 40.7%, and a return of $5.81 for every $1 invested. [15]

The message across every dataset is consistent: doing nothing costs more than doing something.

If your team is feeling the weight of these numbers, we can help.

Our instant quote calculator gives you a figure in under two minutes. Or explore how workplace massage fits into a broader approach to the statistics on this page.

Here's the research we've referenced

[1] Beyond Blue. "1 in 2 Australians Facing Workplace Burnout." Community poll of 1,000 people, June 2025. https://www.beyondblue.org.au/about/media/media-releases/1-in-2-Australians-Facing-Workplace-Burnout

[2] TELUS Health. "The State of Mental Health and Wellbeing in Australian Workplaces." Mental Health Barometer, 2024-2025. https://www.telushealth.com/en-au/resources/premium/the-state-of-mental-health-and-wellbeing-in-australian-workplaces

[3] Gallup. "State of the Global Workplace: 2025 Report." https://www.gallup.com/workplace/697904/state-of-the-global-workplace-global-data.aspx

[4] Safe Work Australia. "Key Work Health and Safety Statistics Australia 2025." October 2025. Referenced via https://www.howdengroup.com/au-en/australias-work-health-safety-data

[5] Safe Work Australia. "Psychological Health and Safety in the Workplace." February 2024. https://data.safeworkaustralia.gov.au/report/psychological-health-and-safety-workplace

[6] Australian Government Productivity Commission. "Mental Health Inquiry Report." Report no. 95, November 2020. https://www.pc.gov.au/inquiries/completed/mental-health/report

[7] PwC and Beyond Blue. "Creating a Mentally Healthy Workplace: Return on Investment Analysis." Referenced via https://www.oncoreservices.com/news-resources/is-australia-in-a-workplace-wellbeing-crisis

[8] Pathology Awareness Australia. Report on presenteeism costs. Referenced via https://www.employhealth.com.au/compensation-premium/low-productivity-high-absenteeism-and-presenteeism/

[9] Safe Work Australia. "Psychosocial Safety Climate and Better Productivity in Australian Workplaces." https://www.safeworkaustralia.gov.au/resources-and-publications/reports/psychosocial-safety-climate-and-better-productivity-australian-workplaces-costs-productivity-presenteeism-absenteeism

[10] people2people Recruitment. Burnout survey of 783 Australian workers, February 2025. Referenced via https://www.staffingindustry.com/news/global-daily-news/australian-workers-face-rising-levels-of-burnout-in-the-workplace

[11] Robert Half. Australian employee burnout survey of 1,000 full-time office workers, 2024. Referenced via https://ia.acs.org.au/article/2024/burnout-at-alarming-levels-in-australia-report-finds.html

[12] TELUS Health. "Mental Health Index: Australia." January 2024. https://www.telushealth.com/en-au/press-releases/telus-mental-health-index-australia-january-2024

[13] Inside Small Business. HR professionals stress report. Referenced via https://chalonpc.com/blog/hr-stress-australia-2026/

[14] Norton Rose Fulbright. "Victoria's new Psychological Health Regulations are now in effect." December 2025. https://www.nortonrosefulbright.com/en/knowledge/publications/d97dcba7/victorias-new-psychological-health-regulations-are-now-in-effect

[15] Comcare. "Benefits to Business: The Evidence for Investing in Worker Health and Wellbeing." https://www.comcare.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0006/99303/Benefits_to_business_the_evidence_for_investing_in_worker_health_and_wellbeing.pdf