Recognising Early Signs of Fatigue in Employees

Fatigue is more than simply feeling tired, it can have major effects on safety, productivity, wellbeing, and injury risk in the workplace. It does not just present itself physically but can have major impacts mentally as well. In the past year, 92% of Australian employees reported fatigue (McNamara, 2026). Recognising early warning signs of fatigue can help prevent incidents and support healthier workplaces. With the new financial year upon us, there is no better time to be aware of this. This blog will discuss fatigue within the workplace and why it is crucial to recognise the early signs of fatigue in employees for their safety and wellbeing at work.

What Is Workplace Fatigue?

Fatigue can be defined as “a feeling of constant exhaustion, burnout or lack of energy [and] can be physical, mental or a combination of both” (Victoria State Government Department of Health, 2023). Fatigue can impact physical abilities, mental and cognitive abilities, and emotional abilities (Safe Work Australia, n.d.). This may include negative effects on strength, concentration, decision making and communicating with others.

Fatigue can result from both work-related and personal factors, for example:

• Working hours and shift structure (long hours, consecutive workdays, inadequate breaks, overnight shifts).
• Work tasks and environments (high workloads, repetitive tasks, and poor work environments including too hot, poor ventilation and air quality).
• Individual factors (sleep quality, health and/or sleep conditions, age, personal non-work related responsibilities and working multiple jobs).

Fatigue within the workplace can grow over the short term or long term. Short-term fatigue can present itself through symptoms such as consistent yawning, issues with short-term memory and poor judgment and decision making. Long-term fatigue can cause serious health issues such as anxiety, high blood pressure and even heart disease. Therefore, it is crucial to recognise the signs of fatigue in employees as early as possible to avoid it causing any injuries or health issues.

Common Early Signs of Fatigue in Employees

In order to recognise the early signs of fatigue in employees, it is important to know what symptoms to look out for. As fatigue can present itself physically and mentally, or both, there are a variety of signs employers and managers should be aware of.

Physical signs

• Frequent yawning.
• Sleepiness.
• Heavy eyelids.
• Headaches.
• Slower movements.
• Sore muscles.
• Complaints of tiredness.
• Increased minor mistakes.

Cognitive signs

• Reduced concentration.
• Poor decision-making.
• Forgetfulness/issues with short-term memory.
• Slower reaction times and reflexes.
• Poor hand-eye coordination.

Behavioural and emotional signs

• Irritability and moodiness.
• Reduced motivation.
• Withdrawal from colleagues.
• Increased absenteeism or presenteeism.
• Taking more risks or shortcuts.

Why Early Recognition Matters

If signs of fatigue are not recognised early and managed effectively amongst employees, there can be major consequences within the workplace. For example:

• Increased likelihood of errors and incidents.
• Increased workplace injuries – due to errors and incidents such as near misses, poor decision making and judgement, and lack of concentration.
• Higher workers’ compensation costs.
• Reduced productivity.
• Poorer mental health.

Early recognition of fatigue can avoid a range of workplace incidents that may occur in a variety of industries. For example, within the aged care industry, carers often perform physically demanding tasks such as manual handling as well as providing emotional support to residents. Fatigue can increase the risk of musculoskeletal injuries, falls, and reduced quality of care. Additionally, within the childcare industry fatigue can affect an educator’s ability to supervise children effectively, recognise hazards, or respond quickly to emergencies. It may also impact patience, communication, and decision-making throughout their workday. Transport workers can also be majorly impacted by fatigue through vehicle accidents, caused by reduced alertness, slower reaction times or briefly falling asleep behind the wheel.

How Employers Can Help Reduce Fatigue

To reduce fatigue for employees, employers can implement a variety of practical strategies, for example adjusting work schedules and shift design. Managers should encourage regular breaks and the timings of these should be flexible. Workloads and overtime for employees should be regularly monitored to avoid being overworked.

Employers should prevent scheduling working weeks with long hours, provide at least one full day off each week and avoid scheduling consecutive workdays frequently. Reasonable rosters should be created that have appropriate shift times and allow for recovery time between shifts. This is particularly important when it comes to night shifts. To reduce fatigue, employers should avoid scheduling shifts during periods when workers would normally be sleeping. However, if night shifts are necessary employers should place a limit on the amount of night shifts per week (e.g. 3 nights per week) and avoid assigning tasks that require intense safety practices between 2am and 6am (Safe Work Australia, n.d.).

Additionally, employers should foster a culture in the workplace that encourages employees to raise concerns and discuss these openly, especially when it comes to fatigue. This can be achieved by having clear policies and procedures surrounding fatigue, such as “policies on second jobs and processes for workers to report fatigue” (Safe Work Australia, n.d.). Encouraging employees to speak up about fatigue concerns can help employers identify early warning signs and respond before issues escalate. As well as making employees aware of fatigue policies and procedures, employers and managers should be trained in how to recognise signs of fatigue in employees.

In November 2025, a new model Code of Practice on ‘Managing the Risk of Fatigue at Work’ was introduced by Safe Work Australia. This new model Code of Practice provided practical guidance for businesses and provided greater clarity on how fatigue affects work performance, as well as an employee’s physical, mental and emotional health. This could assist employers with reducing fatigue and recognising early signs of this within their employees.

Fatigue and Return to Work

Fatigue is an important consideration when supporting an employee’s return to work, particularly following an injury or illness. After an incident or injury has occurred, employers should be reviewing their employees’ work demands and duties, particularly to see if these were a cause of fatigue.

When employees are returning to the workplace, they may experience reduced physical or mental capacity as they recover, making them more susceptible to fatigue during the early stages of their return. Hence, if fatigue is not recognised and managed appropriately, it can slow recovery, increase the risk of re-injury, and affect an employee’s confidence in returning to their role. Therefore, employers should consider gradual increases in work hours to assist recovery and avoid fatigue developing too quickly after returning to work. A well-developed return to work plan should consider these factors and reflect these in suitable duties, manageable graduated work hours, regular reviews, and open communication between the worker, employer, treating practitioners, and rehab provider.

Concerned about fatigue management or supporting an employee returning to work? Recovery Partners can help organisations develop practical, evidence-based return to work strategies that prioritise both employee wellbeing and workplace safety.