HR Grapevine: Who supports HR

In this article in HR Grapevine, Clinical psychologist Dr Jo Burrell has again highlighted the growing mental health crisis facing the HR profession, following new findings showing that many HR professionals continue to experience significant levels of depression, anxiety and burnout.

Speaking to HR Grapevine, Burrell reflected on the latest data from Ultimate Resilience’s 2026 HR Mental Wellbeing Survey, which found that 74% of HR professionals reported symptoms of low mood and depression, while 44% met the threshold for clinically significant depression, more than double the rate seen in the wider working population. Anxiety levels also remained alarmingly high, with 73% reporting symptoms and 40% meeting the criteria for clinically significant anxiety.

The emotional burden carried by HR professionals and the lack of adequate support structures available to them mean that HR teams are frequently expected to absorb the emotional impact of restructures, conflict, safeguarding concerns and organisational crises while receiving little support themselves. Burrell described the overall picture as “quite stark” and warned that the profession remains under intense strain. The findings reinforce her ongoing call for organisations to take HR wellbeing more seriously and to provide meaningful psychological support for those working in people-focused roles.

Find out more about the psychological support that Ultimate Resilience offers HR professionals. Get in touch:

Get in touch