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Ranking the Most Stressful Industries in the U.S. by Welltory
Workplace stress affects millions of Americans every single day but some industries are definitely more stressful than others. This ranking digs deeper into the problem and ranks industries by stress score, which is derived from factors such as average weekly hours, earnings, rate of injuries, burnout levels, and more.
From Leisure & Hospitality to Construction: Who tops the list?
According to the ranking, the leisure & hospitality industry tops the list with the highest stress among workers. Irregular hours, customer-facing work, and low pay are some of the key factors that make jobs within this industry really stressful.
The list continues with professional & business services and transportation & warehousing while wholesale trade stands out as the least stressful industry.
Complete Ranking List
Methodology
The Industry Stress Ranking was developed by analyzing the major U.S. industries and combining seven key workplace indicators into a single stress score from 1 to 100. These seven factors offer a comprehensive view of how stressful each industry is:
1. Average Weekly Hours
Measures how many hours employees work per week on average. Longer hours often signal higher workload and increased stress levels.
Measures how many hours employees work per week on average. Longer hours often signal higher workload and increased stress levels.
2. Job Openings Rate
Shows the rate of open jobs in the industry that can indicate labour shortage and this will usually put more stress on the existing workers.
Shows the rate of open jobs in the industry that can indicate labour shortage and this will usually put more stress on the existing workers.
3. Workplace Injury and Illness Rate
Tracks how often workers experience injuries or illnesses on the job. Higher rates reflect more physically demanding or hazardous work environments.
Tracks how often workers experience injuries or illnesses on the job. Higher rates reflect more physically demanding or hazardous work environments.
4. Average Weekly Earnings
Represents how much workers make on average weekly. Lower earnings contribute to financial stress, especially within industries with demanding workloads.
Represents how much workers make on average weekly. Lower earnings contribute to financial stress, especially within industries with demanding workloads.
5. Layoff and Discharge Rates
Represents how frequently workers are laid off or discharged. Higher rates indicate job insecurity which often leads to high stress.
Represents how frequently workers are laid off or discharged. Higher rates indicate job insecurity which often leads to high stress.
6. Employee Quit Rates
Shows the percentage of employees voluntarily leaving their jobs. High quit rates often point to dissatisfaction, burnout, or stressful working conditions.
Shows the percentage of employees voluntarily leaving their jobs. High quit rates often point to dissatisfaction, burnout, or stressful working conditions.
7. Worker Burnout Rate
Reflects the percentage of employees reporting burnout symptoms such as exhaustion, low motivation, or mental fatigue — a direct indicator of workplace stress.
Reflects the percentage of employees reporting burnout symptoms such as exhaustion, low motivation, or mental fatigue — a direct indicator of workplace stress.
Because each factor uses different units, they were first normalized so they can be compared on the same scale. This was done using a standard min–max normalization formula, which converts any number into a value between 0 and 1. After normalization, each factor was assigned a weight based on its importance in contributing to workplace stress, then combined to produce a final stress score from 1 to 100.
Sources used for gathering data — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and two independent surveys measuring worker burnout (Ringover and BMC Public Health).
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