Even before COVID-19, the cost of workplace stress was high: $500 billion to the US economy,1 550 million workdays per year,1 60% to 80% of all workplace accidents,2 up to 90% of doctor visits,3 and worst of all, 120,000 annual deaths.4 To no surprise, the pandemic and its effects exacerbated job stress for many people. To name just a few, these include illness and lost loved ones, heightened racial, gender, and disability inequities, an overburdened healthcare system, a turbulent economy, supply-chain disruption, and shifting expectations around work.5,6 Overall, a striking 94% of workers reported experiencing increased stress in 2021.6

In response to these phenomena and the resulting wave of quits many termed the Great Resignation, organizations began to prioritize employee well-being in ways they never had before. But despite all of ­­­the attention on workplace well-being, one group has been largely ignored: the leaders who are often held responsible for it.