Loneliness is killing the workplace. Here's why — and what to do about it

U.S. companies face an under-the-radar crisis: More than half of American workers say they suffer from loneliness, with major implications for business operations, according to the Cigna $CI Group.

Cigna’s data shows that 52% of U.S. workers reported feeling lonely in 2025. The public health crisis seriously affects physical and mental health, according to the World Health Organization. It's also a big problem for companies and employees, as on-the-job loneliness leads to missed work, rising disengagement, lower productivity, and a strong desire to change jobs among affected staffers.

“Yes, more workers are lonely,” said Chloë Bean, LMFT, a Los Angeles-based somatic trauma therapist. “I see it every week in my work with high-level professionals, many of them work remotely and live alone.”

Workplace loneliness isn't just about being alone; it's about lacking meaningful, regulating human connection, Bean noted. “Remote workers are especially vulnerable to this issue. Clinically, it shows up as burnout, low mood, disengagement, and declining motivation, even among people who look successful on paper.”

On-the-job loneliness is a serious concern

For affected professionals, the struggle is real, and it’s up to employers to track team-member wellness and step in before the problem becomes entrenched. Here are a few warning signs that a remote worker is feeling adrift at work.

Loneliness usually comes with yellow caution lights — not red ones

There are signs that a remote worker is struggling with serious isolation, but they may be hard to discern from a distance.

“People often don't describe it as loneliness at first,” Bean said. “Staffers may say they feel flat, foggy, irritable, or strangely unmotivated.”

Compounding the problem is that many employees are working longer hours, barely getting movement into their day, and realizing their social world has quietly disappeared. “At that point, work becomes the main and sometimes only source of structure and validation, which can be risky,” Bean added. “Productivity may feel positive for some time, but it's typically driven by pressure to perform rather than sustainable energy.”

Spotting major disconnections

Mental health professionals describe loneliness as the gap between the level of connection people need and what they actually experience. “It’s largely measured through self-reported data and organizational indicators like disengagement, absenteeism, turnover, and burnout,” said Stephanie Lemek, founder at The Wounded Workforce, a workplace mental health services firm.

Consequently, it's important that the impacted worker and their manager recognize that remote work did not cause loneliness. “What remote work does is remove the illusion that proximity equals connection,” Lemek said. “Many employees felt lonely in offices long before hybrid and remote models became common. The difference now is that the lack of intentional connection is more visible and harder to ignore.”

Lemek notes that common workplace loneliness indicators include the following signs.

• Absent from meetings or minimal participation beyond task updates.
• Declining collaboration or reluctance to ask for help.
• Increased irritability, disengagement, or cynicism.
• Drops in productivity, focus, or follow-through.
• A sense of invisibility or the belief that their work does not matter.

Withdrawal is the big tell

Remote workers may also show signs of backing off from other staffers and their own assignments.

“You’ll see fewer proactive conversations, cameras off, minimal contribution, and a shift from collaboration to task survival,” said Morag Barrett, an executive coach and human connection workplace specialist at SkyeTeam in Broomfiel, Col. “We also see decision fatigue, lower trust, and emotional flatness. People still 'perform,' but discretionary effort and creativity quietly drop off.”

Impacted workers can also tap into tendencies toward loneliness on the job, Barrett noted.

“From an individual’s perspective, the signals are more internal,” she said. “You start feeling invisible, avoiding outreach because it feels like effort, defaulting to 'I’ll just handle it myself,”'or mistaking independence for resilience. When work becomes purely transactional and energy drops, even if results look fine on paper, that’s often loneliness, not burnout, at the root.”

How to tackle remote work isolation head-on

Employees and employers both play a big role in tapping into on-the-job loneliness and in squarely addressing the problem. These strategies can clear a path for employee health and wellness and fuel robust company productivity, free of isolation threats.

Stop waiting for a connection to happen accidentally

Remote professionals can aid their own cause by being intentional.

“That means scheduling relational check-ins and not just task updates; investing in one or two trusted allies; and naming specifically what you need,” Barrett said. “Loneliness thrives in silence, but connection is created one conversation and one relationship at a time.”

Remote workers should also understand that connection doesn't happen passively. “Instead, it requires deliberate cultivation,” said Wendy Gates Corbett, a workplace leadership teacher at Duke $DUK University, and author of the book, "The Energy of Belonging: 75 Ideas to Spark Workplace Community."

In remote environments, Corbett advises workers to create accountability partnerships with colleagues, meeting virtually regularly to hold each other accountable. “As a remote worker, I host 'Study Hall' with colleagues where we work on a project for 90 minutes and share our progress at the end of it,” she said.

Companies can design for connection, not just efficiency

Management should start measuring relationships and not just engagement.

“Companies should train leaders to build trust remotely, normalize non-transactional conversations, and reward behaviors that strengthen relationships, not just outcomes,” Barrett noted.

Organizations can also support remote workers by clarifying intentions, expectations, and resources.

“For example, organizations need to normalize connection as an essential element of the employee experience, not a bonus or nice-to-have,” Corbett said. “This happens when leaders are trained on the importance of and impact of connection, and they're provided resources to help create and sustain connection on their team.”

Most importantly, organizations need to let go of the "24/7," constant-work mentality that measures productivity only in terms of output and embrace the power of fueling their employees with meaningful connection opportunities. “In my work with organizations, I'm seeing success in companies that are intentional about structuring projects to require meaningful cross-department collaboration,” Corbett said.

Don’t accept remote work loneliness

Given the remote nature of digital work, it’s understandable for career professionals and their managers to accept loneliness on the job.

“If organizations commit to focusing on the importance and impact of connection and meaningful relationships at work, we're not stuck with loneliness,” Corbett said.

A big part of that commitment is employees and employers working together to combat loneliness and disconnection, and building programs that ensure employees feel seen, heard, and known.

“That happens with intentional design by valuing relationship-building and building skills across the organization for cultivating real connection,” Corbett said.

Companies are only stuck if they continue to treat connection as a nice to have workplace structure, Barrett said. “Remote work doesn’t cause loneliness; unintentional leadership does. When organizations prioritize meaningful relationships, productivity and wellbeing rise together," Barrett noted.

If you or someone you know is struggling with loneliness, help is available. Call or text 988, or chat 988lifeline.org