What Questions Should Be on an Employee Wellbeing Survey?
A defensible employee wellbeing survey starts with the five-item WHO-5 Well-Being Index (free, public-domain, reproducible verbatim), which converts to a 0–100 score — a score below 52 warrants follow-up and resources, not a clinical label. Pair it with a short four-item burnout screen to flag exhaustion and cynicism trends. Keep the survey light: according to the American Psychological Association's 2024 Work in America survey, 67% of US workers reported at least one burnout-associated outcome in the previous month, so the goal is a credible early-warning signal, not a clinical workup. For designing the program itself — activities, reimbursement budgets, and compliance considerations — visit /workplace-wellness/.
Copy-Ready Questions, Grouped by Theme
Every group uses the scale that fits it. Copy one question, a whole theme, or the full set straight into your survey tool.
WHO-5 Well-Being Index
Frequency5 All of the time → 0 At no time (over the last two weeks)The five-item WHO-5 measures general wellbeing over the past two weeks on a 6-point frequency scale (5 = all of the time, 0 = at no time). Sum the raw scores (0–25) and multiply by four for a 0–100 percentage score. A score below 13 (raw) or below 52% warrants follow-up. Verbatim reproduction is permitted with attribution to the World Health Organization. These items are a wellbeing check, not a clinical diagnosis.
- 1.
I have felt cheerful and in good spirits.
WHO-5 Well-Being Index, © World Health OrganizationPositive affect is a core wellbeing dimension; consistently low scores here signal motivational depletion before it shows up in productivity data.
- 2.
I have felt calm and relaxed.
WHO-5 Well-Being Index, © World Health OrganizationLow calm/relaxation scores correlate with chronic stress — an early signal before burnout thresholds are reached.
- 3.
I have felt active and vigorous.
WHO-5 Well-Being Index, © World Health OrganizationVigor reflects energy availability; a sustained drop predicts fatigue-related errors and absenteeism.
- 4.
I woke up feeling fresh and rested.
WHO-5 Well-Being Index, © World Health OrganizationSleep quality is the most modifiable wellbeing driver and the first casualty of sustained overload.
- 5.
My daily life has been filled with things that interest me.
WHO-5 Well-Being Index, © World Health OrganizationInterest and meaning are protective factors; their absence is a leading indicator of disengagement and quiet quitting.
Burnout Screen
Frequency5 Always → 1 NeverFour compiled original-worded items that screen for emotional exhaustion, depletion, coping capacity, and cynicism — the three core burnout dimensions described in the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) literature. The MBI itself is proprietary (licensed via Mind Garden); these items are original-worded screens, not MBI reproductions. A high-frequency trend on items 1, 2, or 4, or a low frequency on item 3, warrants action: share EAP/wellbeing resources and investigate workload. Do not treat results as a clinical diagnosis.
- 1.
I feel emotionally drained by my work.
Emotional exhaustion is the earliest and most predictive dimension of burnout; rising scores here are the clearest intervention trigger.
- 2.
I feel used up at the end of the workday.
Physical depletion at day's end signals unsustainable workload before formal burnout is established.
- 3.
I feel I can cope with my current workload.
Reverse-scored item — high coping capacity is a resilience buffer. A drop here, even when exhaustion items are still moderate, is an early warning.
- 4.
I feel detached or cynical about my work.
Cynicism and depersonalization signal the shift from stress to burnout — and are harder to reverse than exhaustion alone.
Wellbeing Support
5-pt LikertStrongly disagree → Strongly agreeTwo to three light compiled items that measure perceived employer support and surface employee-driven solutions. Keep this group short — program depth (activities, budgets, EAP structure) belongs at /workplace-wellness/, not in the survey itself.
- 1.
I feel my employer genuinely supports my wellbeing.
Perceived support is the bridge between individual scores and employer accountability — low scores here indicate that resources exist but employees don't feel them.
- 2.
I am aware of the wellbeing resources available to me (e.g., EAP, mental-health benefits, flexible scheduling).
Awareness gaps often mask satisfaction gaps — employees can't use support they don't know about.
- 3.
What is one thing that would most improve your wellbeing at work?
Open textA single open-end surfaces the specific changes employees want — and avoids loading the survey with speculative options. Route actionable themes to /workplace-wellness/ program design.
When Should You Use This Survey?
Match the survey type and cadence to your situation.
You want a baseline wellbeing snapshot before launching a new program
Use
Avoid
Adding engagement or satisfaction items to the same sendA clean wellbeing baseline is the pre/post anchor. Mixing drivers muddles what moved when you re-run after the program launch.
Quarterly pulse — you want a short wellbeing check alongside other drivers
Use
Avoid
Trimming the WHO-5 to 3 items to save spaceThe WHO-5 is validated as a five-item instrument. Dropping items breaks the 0–100 conversion and invalidates comparisons to population norms.
Post-restructure or high-workload period where burnout risk is elevated
Use
Avoid
Sending without pre-pairing a wellbeing-resources messageAsking about burnout without signposting EAP/support resources can feel extractive. Always accompany the survey with a clear list of available help.
You want to design or improve your wellbeing program (budgets, activities, compliance)
Use
Avoid
Trying to answer program-design questions through a measurement surveyA WHO-5 score tells you whether people are okay. It does not tell you which activities to fund, what reimbursement cap to set, or how to structure an EAP. Those decisions belong to program design, not measurement.
What "Good" Looks Like
Scores only mean something against a benchmark. Here are the numbers worth measuring against.
67%
of US workers reported at least one burnout-associated outcome in the previous month (lack of interest, motivation, or low energy)
American Psychological Association, Work in America 2024
42%
of working adults reported experiencing burnout in the past six months — a separate measure from the APA Psychological Assn figure; not directly comparable
American Psychiatric Association, Healthy Minds poll 2024
54%
of US workers say job insecurity is significantly affecting their stress levels
American Psychological Association, Work in America 2025
Survey Design Best Practices
The methodology that separates a survey people answer honestly from one they ignore.
Licensing discipline: WHO-5 is the showcase of doing this right
The WHO-5 is free to use and verbatim reproduction is permitted with attribution to the World Health Organization. It is one of the few validated wellbeing instruments you can reproduce on a commercial site without a license fee. The Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) is the opposite: it is proprietary, licensed via Mind Garden, and must not be reproduced verbatim. The burnout screen on this page uses original-worded items for that reason. Before publishing any instrument, classify its status — validated/free, validated/proprietary, or compiled — and follow the appropriate rules.
METH-012 — Licensing & attribution discipline
Use a frequency scale, not an agreement scale, for wellbeing and burnout items
Wellbeing and burnout items ask how often an experience occurred, not whether a statement is true. The WHO-5 uses a 6-point frequency scale (0 = at no time, 5 = all of the time) over a defined 14-day recall window. Burnout screen items follow the same logic. Swapping to a Likert agreement scale would change what you're measuring and break comparability with WHO-5 population norms. Keep one scale consistent within each group.
METH-002 — Scale design
Sensitive data demands a strong confidentiality assurance
Wellbeing surveys ask about mental health, energy, and emotional state — data that feels more personal than engagement scores. Response honesty depends on employees believing their answers are confidential and will not affect their employment. Communicate clearly: who administers the survey, how data is stored, who sees results and at what group size, and what happens with the findings. A minimum reporting threshold of n≥5 is especially important here — wellbeing scores for a three-person team can re-identify individuals even when individual responses are not shown.
METH-005 — Response-rate drivers
Survey Mistakes That Wreck Your Data
Treating a low WHO-5 score as a clinical diagnosis
A raw WHO-5 score below 13 (or below 52%) is a flag, not a verdict. It means a meaningful share of your workforce reported low wellbeing over the past two weeks — it does not mean those employees have a depressive disorder. Clinical screening requires a clinician, not an HR survey.
Running a wellbeing survey without signposting support resources
Asking employees to rate emotional drain, cynicism, and sleep quality without immediately pointing them to help is a trust-breaker. It signals that you are collecting data, not taking care of people.
Collecting wellbeing data on groups too small to be truly anonymous
A wellbeing score for a four-person team is effectively identified data — even if you never show individual responses. An employee in a small group who knows they are the only one with a chronic health issue can be re-identified from a low aggregate score.
Abbreviating the WHO-5 to save space
The WHO-5 is validated as five items. Dropping two items to fit a three-question pulse invalidates the 0–100 conversion and breaks comparability with published population norms and your own prior waves.
Using the burnout screen as a substitute for program action
A high burnout-screen score tells you there is a problem; it does not solve it. Organizations that surface burnout data and then wait for the next annual survey cycle without any visible response accelerate disengagement rather than reducing burnout.
Where These Questions Come From
Validated instruments have owners. Here's what's adapted from what — and how to use each one without stepping on a license.
WHO-5 Well-Being Index
The WHO-5 Well-Being Index is free to use with attribution; verbatim reproduction is permitted. In 2024, copyright was formally assigned to the World Health Organization to facilitate open dissemination. Attribution required: 'WHO-5 Well-Being Index, © World Health Organization.' Clinical-use caveat: a raw score below 13 (or below 52%) indicates poor wellbeing and warrants follow-up or depression screening. For HR and editorial purposes, frame results as a wellbeing check, NOT a clinical diagnosis.
Source: WHO-5 Well-Being Index, © World Health Organization (1998); Topp et al. (2015) systematic review
Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI)
The Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI), developed by Maslach & Jackson, is proprietary and licensed via Mind Garden. The MBI items are NOT reproduced on this page. The four burnout-screen items here are original-worded compiled items designed to screen for burnout risk at a population level — they are not a validated clinical instrument and must not be presented as equivalent to the MBI. For validated burnout measurement, license the MBI directly from Mind Garden or use the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (CBI), which is freely available for research use.
Source: Maslach, C. & Jackson, S.E. (1981). Maslach Burnout Inventory. Mind Garden, Inc.
Launch & Follow-Up Templates
The invite, the reminder, and the results share-back — the messages that drive response rates.
Email invite — quarterly wellbeing check
Subject: 5-minute wellbeing check — your input matters Hi [First Name], We run a short wellbeing survey each quarter so we can understand how people are feeling and act on what we hear. This survey takes about 3 minutes and uses the WHO-5 Well-Being Index — a validated, freely available measure used in workplace health research worldwide. Your responses are confidential. Results are reported at the team level only, and only for groups of 5 or more. No one will see your individual answers. If anything comes up while completing the survey — or at any time — our Employee Assistance Programme is available 24/7: [EAP link or phone number]. Take the survey: [Link] Deadline: [Date] Thank you, [Sender Name]
Send from a senior leader or People team lead, not an automated tool account. Visible sponsorship lifts response rates on sensitive surveys.
Frequently Asked Questions
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