Finnish workers reported stronger overall work ability in summer 2026 than they did a year earlier, but the improvement has not removed concerns about burnout, with more than one in four employees still at increased risk, according to research by the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health.
The institute’s “How is Finland doing?” study found that 43% of employed people rated their work ability as excellent, compared with 39% in summer 2025. The research looked at five dimensions of work ability: physical, cognitive, social, emotional and skills-related demands.
Physical work ability produced the strongest result. Some 67% of respondents said they were fully able to meet physical demands such as standing and lifting. Emotional work ability was the weakest area, with 41% saying they could fully manage situations involving other people’s emotions.
“Work ability is more multidimensional than many people think,” research professor Jari Hakanen said. An employee can perform strongly in one area while needing support in another, he noted.
Age was one of the clearest differences in the results, particularly in physical and cognitive work ability. More than half of workers under 30 rated their overall work ability as excellent, and younger employees generally reported stronger physical and cognitive abilities than older groups.
The picture became less positive when researchers looked at other aspects of working life. Among employees aged 18 to 29, 28% said they experienced boredom at work every day or several times a week. The figure fell to 23% among those aged 30 to 45, 15% among 46 to 55-year-olds and 12% among workers aged 56 to 66.
Work engagement also varied considerably by age. Fewer than half of workers aged 18 to 29 reported experiencing work engagement every day or several times a week. Among workers in their 50s and early 60s, the corresponding figure was 65%.
Younger employees also reported more loneliness and weaker social work ability. The latter refers to the ability to manage teamwork and the informal social demands that come with working alongside other people.
Senior researcher Janne Kaltiainen cautioned against treating these differences simply as characteristics of younger workers. Differences in professional experience, occupations and the social demands associated with jobs where younger employees are more commonly represented can also influence the results.
Burnout risk, meanwhile, showed little difference between age groups. Across the working population, 26% of employed people faced an increased risk of burnout or reported symptoms consistent with burnout. The figure remains higher than levels recorded before the Covid-19 pandemic.
The research points to workplace structures and demands as important factors behind the problem. Bureaucracy and conflicting roles were among the factors associated with burnout symptoms.
Researcher Jie Li said rigid procedures, inadequate tools, slow flows of information and competing expectations can create unnecessary demands for employees. They can also reduce the amount of time workers are able to spend on their core responsibilities.
Other factors linked to burnout included job insecurity, excessive workloads, repetitive tasks and physical demands. However, the study found weaker associations between these factors and burnout across the working population.
The findings also challenge the idea that the amount of remote work is a major factor in how employees assess their ability to work. The study found no association between the amount of remote work and workers’ overall assessment of their work ability.
The results present a mixed picture of working life in Finland. Overall work ability has improved compared with a year earlier, but the continued level of burnout risk suggests that stronger performance at work does not necessarily mean that employees are experiencing healthier or more sustainable working conditions.
