An uneven playing field can cause you to burn out faster than you think.By Norazilah Taib

When you can almost feel the pangs of a work burn-out, take a look around and see whether you are being treated fairly by others above you.

Psychologists Christina Maslach and Michael Leiter studied hundreds of employees at a large North American university and found that workers who were being treated unfairly had a higher chance of experiencing a burn-out, as compared to those who did not feel they were being treated unfairly.

The study found unfairly treated workers reporting more mental health problems. In addition, their work suffered, creating a vicious cycle of a workplace burnout and poor performance.

The research also suggested that people seemed willing to endure tough times if they share the burden among colleagues equally. But they quickly became bitter if they were being singled out for poor treatment.

“When loyal employees are treated in a way that is not fair, they feel betrayed in a very deep, emotional way,” Leiter added. “When you do a lot of work you get tired, but it does not have the same emotional impact as being treated unfairly.”