Call center burnout is a state of physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion. It is caused by prolonged stress, high workloads, and repetitive tasks. Such burnout leads to lower productivity, higher turnover and declining customer satisfaction. To mitigate it, you can implement automation, flexible scheduling, continuous training, and team-building activities.
It’s Monday morning. All 15 phones of your support agents keep ringing. Their coffee isn’t helping. The thought of handling even one more frustrated customer makes your agents want to give up!
If this sounds familiar, your customer support department might be experiencing call center burnout. Usually, this happens when too much stress builds up over time. This leaves your agents emotionally, physically, and mentally drained!
For CX leaders managing consumer or D2C brands in the US, UK and Australia, preventing call center burnout is important as it impacts CSAT, NPS and revenue growth.
Research shows that in 2024 about 77% of agents reported handling more work and tougher calls than the year before. More than half admitted they had hit a breaking point, while 69% of business leaders identified agent burnout as a top challenge.
But it doesn’t have to be this way. In this article, let’s talk about the warning signs of burnout and learn how to prevent call center burnout. Also, we will learn about the warning signs of call center burnout and proven tips to prevent burnout while improving CX.
6 Warning Signs of Call Center Burnout
Studies show that replacing a burned-out employee costs $10,000 to $21,000 in recruitment, training, and lost productivity. Additionally, turnover-related costs can amount to 30-50% of an employee’s annual salary.
Thus, as a business owner, you must keep tracking the following six red flags. If you see at least three of these signs, it may be time to reduce the workload of your agents:
1. When Simple Tasks Start to Feel Impossible!
Call center burnout can make work that once felt manageable now seem impossible to complete! If simple activities (such as taking notes after a call or sending a follow-up email) seem exhausting, it could be a sign that stress is affecting your agent’s ability to function.
Additionally, their to-do list might always feel unfinished, no matter how much effort they put in. Over time, this can lead to frustration and a sense of helplessness.
2. The Feeling of “Dreading Work”
Call center burnout can cause your agents to lose motivation before their workday even begins. Instead of feeling ready to start their shift, they may wake up already exhausted!
Even the idea of answering calls and handling customer issues might fill them with stress or frustration. If you observe this ongoing sense of dread, it is a clear sign of call center burnout.
3. When Every Workday Feels Like a Burden!
When call center burnout sets in, your agents stop feeling good about the work they do. In the past, solving a customer’s problem or getting positive feedback might have felt rewarding for them. But now, those same tasks do not bring any sense of accomplishment!
Due to this, they start feeling:
- Their efforts don’t matter
- Their work isn’t making a difference
Gradually, this loss of satisfaction makes it harder for them to stay motivated.
4. Your Agents Lost the Spark and Have High Cynicism Towards Work
Call center burnout lets your agents feel emotionally distant from coworkers and customers. Conversations that used to be positive or meaningful for them may now seem pointless.
They might also become skeptical about whether their work has value. They can even start doubting your company’s leadership. This cynicism makes teamwork difficult and leads to a negative work environment.
5. You See a Rise in Sick Leave Applications
Stress and exhaustion don’t just affect your agent’s emotions! They also take a toll on their body. Usually, burnt employees experience:
- Headaches
- Stomach pain
- Trouble sleeping
Some people develop tension in their neck and shoulders or feel physically drained all the time. A study found that burnout can lead to 63% more sick days taken by employees. Thus, an increase in leave applications is a clear sign that your agents are suffering from call center burnout.
6. Observing Short Fuse? Burnout Might Be the Cause!
Due to call center burnout, your agents lose patience with others. In such cases, you will observe that:
- Your agents find themselves getting frustrated more easily
- They are snapping at coworkers and customers
- Even minor requests or questions may feel annoying to them
- They react more strongly than usual to situations that wouldn’t have bothered them before
Such an “irritability” can create tension in the workplace and damage relationships with customers.
How to Avoid Call Center Burnout?
Did you know? Approximately 59% of agents are considered at risk of burnout. This is primarily due to:
- High-performance demands
- Difficult customer interactions
- Long working hours
Such burnout lowers productivity and reduces CX. Below are some proven ways to prevent call center burnout:
1. Give Employees More Control Over Their Schedule
Balancing work and personal life can be difficult (especially in a high-pressure job). Thus, you should offer your agents flexible work arrangements, such as:
- Letting them adjust their work hours
- Giving them the option to work from home
When employees have control over their schedules, they can take care of personal responsibilities without feeling rushed. Flexibility reduces commuting stress and gives agents a sense of autonomy.
2. Let Your Employees Feel More Confident in Their Work
When employees feel unprepared to handle customer issues, their stress increases! As a call center stress relief tip, offer your agents continuous training. This will allow them to learn the required skills.
Ideally, your training should focus on:
- Customer service
- Communication
- Upskilling on new tools and AI platforms
- Empathy and conflict resolution training
Businesses that invest in training show employees that they are valued. This improves job satisfaction and reduces the risk of call center burnout. Continuous training boosts confidence and lowers anxiety when handling complex calls.
3. Encourage Breaks and Recovery Time
Handling calls non-stop drains energy. Encourage:
- Micro-breaks (just 5–10 minutes)
- Regular days off to recharge
A recent study found 64% of employees felt more energetic after taking short breaks.
4. Foster Connection With Team-Building Activities
Please note that constantly handling calls and solving problems without breaks can be exhausting. Thus, for call center stress management, you must allow your employees to take short breaks throughout the day. This will help them regain energy and focus.
Stepping away from work for even a few minutes can reduce stress and improve concentration. A recent study found that about 64% of the people who took short breaks (micro-breaks) felt more energetic (had higher “vigour”) and less tired (lower “fatigue”).
Activities like Elevated Raceway, Domino Effect Challenge or Rocket Challenge build camaraderie and reduce stress.
Thus, by encouraging breaks and time off, you can prevent call center burnout and keep your employees motivated in the long run.
Also, these activities create a positive, engaged, and motivated customer support department. Check out the table below to learn about some popular team-building activities:
| Team-building activities | Explanation |
| Elevated Raceway |
|
| Cardboard Boat Build Challenge |
|
| Rocket Challenge |
|
| Cardboard TRAIN-ing Express |
|
| Domino Effect Challenge |
|
5. Use Technology to Reduce Repetition
Automation and AI can:
- Handle repetitive queries (password resets, order tracking)
- Deflect simple tickets to chatbots
- Generate quick-reference knowledge articles
This frees agents to focus on higher-value conversations.
Latest Technologies You Can Use in 2025
It is natural for Your agents to feel overwhelmed by:
- Repetitive work
- High customer demands
Through artificial intelligence (AI), you can reduce call center burnout by automating tasks. Let’s see how:
1. Automated Workflows
Your outsourced call center solutions agents often handle the same basic tasks over and over, like:
- Answering common customer questions
- Logging support tickets
- Entering data in your system
This kind of work often feels tedious and frustrating. By using automation tools, you can let software take care of these repetitive tasks. This reduces call center burnout and allows your agents to focus on meaningful work, like providing personalised support.
2. AI-Powered Chatbots
You can start using AI-powered chatbots to handle simple customer questions, like checking order status or resetting passwords. When a customer has a more complicated issue, the AI can transfer the request to a human agent.
This reduces agent workload as they only need to focus on cases that require problem-solving skills.
3. Generative AI Knowledge Bases
Your agents need quick access to information so that they can answer customer questions. Now, if they constantly have to search for answers, it slows them down and creates frustration. Here, generative AI can help by drafting:
- Knowledge articles based on previous cases
- Frequently asked questions
Once reviewed and approved, these articles can be stored in a knowledge base that employees can refer to whenever they need guidance. This makes it easier to provide accurate answers while reducing the stress of searching for information. These tools reduce load, speed up resolution times and help prevent burnout.
Take Action Against Call Center Burnout Today With Atidiv!
Call center burnout is a serious challenge that affects:
- Employee satisfaction
- CX metrics (CSAT, NPS, AHT)
- Operational costs
If left unaddressed, it can lead to high turnover rates and rising operational costs. However, by implementing flexible schedules, providing proper training, and encouraging regular breaks, you can create a healthier work environment for your agents. Also, you can organise team-building activities to boost morale and strengthen collaboration.
Finding it tough to manage call center burnout? Outsource your customer support to Atidiv!
Atidiv helps CX leaders prevent burnout by combining automation, AI and flexible team models. With 15+ years of experience, 70+ clients and savings of up to 60%, we:
- Balance workloads with 24/7 global coverage
- Provide expert training and coaching
- Deliver 98% QA scores and 4.8 CSAT across 200K+ interactions
Partner with Atidiv to protect your employees from burnout and deliver exceptional CX at scale.
FAQs on Preventing Call Center Burnout
1. What are the biggest reasons for call center burnout?
The main causes are:
- Excessive workload
- Dealing with angry customers
- Lack of breaks
- Repetitive tasks
Also, long hours without flexibility contribute to stress. To manage this, opt for solutions like automation, training, and work-life balance.
2. How can I reduce call center burnout without hiring more employees?
Try to improve work conditions. This can be done by:
- Introducing flexible schedules
- Automating repetitive tasks
- Providing mental health support
Also, you can use AI chatbots, automated workflows and flexible scheduling to handle routine customer questions. This significantly reduces the agent workload and call center burnout.
3. How can team-building activities help prevent call center burnout?
Through team-building activities, you can let your employees feel connected and supported. Also, such activities:
- Encourage collaboration
- Improve morale
- Create a positive work environment
Some common activities are fun challenges like the Rocket Challenge, Elevated Raceway, and Domino Effect Challenge.
4. What’s the cost impact of ignoring burnout?
Attrition costs up to 50% of annual salary per agent plus lower CSAT and NPS.