Workplace suicide has become a hot topic recently with high profile cases of workers taking their own lives due to job related pressures. A 2026 study from not-for-profit Suicide Prevention Australia has painted a bleak picture of the chronic stress workers are experiencing. The study found that 90% of Australia’s workforce experiences occupational distress, with 22% rating their strain as extreme.
In this article, we’ll look at the results of this study to reveal the biggest drivers of workplace stress. Later, we’ll examine the case of a Victorian accountant who a coroner found was driven to suicide due to “toxic” workplace pressures.
What are the top five causes of stress in the workplace?
In its Spotlight Report: Workplace and Industry Distress, Suicide Prevention Australia said that stress is a “systemic feature” of Australian workplaces. It said that its finding that 90% of workers experience distress “reflects structural pressures, not individual weakness.” The not-for-profit further concluded that workplace distress in Australia “is the norm, not the exception.”
Suicide Prevention Australia’s findings were based on responses from over 1,000 Australian workers. The top five pressures identified by the study that cause Australian workers distress are:
- Excessive workloads and burnout: Cited by 61% of respondents.
- Demanding or difficult customer: Cited by half of all respondents (50%).
- Insufficient financial compensation: Cited by 39% of respondents.
- Lack of managerial support: Cited by 39% of respondents.
- Lack of flexibility in working hours and or location: Cited by 34% of respondents.
The study found that these stressors fluctuate depending on gender. Women experience heightened financial anxiety, with 44% identifying inadequate pay as a core stressor, compared to 34% of men. Conversely, male workers are more heavily impacted by deficient management support (39%).
Toxic operational environment drove accountant to workplace suicide
In 2025, the Coroner’s Court of Victoria delivered the findings of its investigation into the death of Karla Lee Jordan. The coroner found that Ms. Jordan, an accountant who worked for Ballarat Health Services, took her own life due to a “toxic” workplace environment. An investigation concluded that workplace stress acted as the employee’s “primary identifiable” workplace suicide stressor.
Summary: Victorian coroner’s investigation into the death of Karla Lee Jordan [2025]
- Key issues: Workplace suicide of an employee following acute mental health decline linked to extreme workload demands, perceived managerial intimidation and poorly managed return-to-work transition.
- Coroner’s findings: A direct link was established between the problematic culture within Ballarat Health Services and the workplace suicide. The coroner identified the workplace as the primary catalyst for her psychological deterioration.
‘Working to 3 am most nights’: Worker commits suicide after stress intensifies
Karla Lee Jordan started working as an accountant in the finance department of the Ballarat Base Hospital, operated by Ballarat Health Services, in 1998. For nearly two decades, she worked successfully in her role, with her husband noting she “generally enjoyed working as an accountant” until an internal restructure in August 2017. The Victorian coroner noted that following the appointment of a new director, Ms. Jordan reported a rapidly deteriorating environment. She expressed persistent fears regarding job security and felt severe “discomfort” with the behaviour of the hospital’s management. Ms. Jordan also felt “unreasonably singled out” during professional interactions.
In May 2018, Ms. Jordan’s situation escalated significantly when she was placed under the management of a new supervisor, leaving her continuously stressed. By March 2019, operational pressures forced her to perform duties well outside ordinary business hours. Her husband recounted that Ms. Jordan would start work at 9 am and was forced to “work back late to 3 am most nights.” He told the Victorian coroner that she needed to do that level of overtime to catch up on her workload. Internal building swipe card records confirmed this, logging her exit times at 10.14 pm on 4 March 2019, 12.40 am on 5 March 2019, and 3.33 am on 6 March 2019.
Accountant had psychotic episode prior to workplace suicide
Ms. Jordan’s managers appeared disconnected from the reality of her workload. Ms. Jordan’s supervisor noted that she completed her end-of-month payroll reporting by 5.43 pm on 4 March 2019. He told the Victorian coroner that he “was unaware why she worked such extended hours” throughout the remainder of that week. On 7 March 2019, less than six hours after logging off from her previous shift, Ms. Jordan returned to the office. She then had a heated altercation with her supervisor, causing her to flee the building in a very distressed state. This severe distress triggered a serious psychiatric crisis.
On 16 March 2019, Ms. Jordan was apprehended by police and admitted to an acute psychiatric facility as an involuntary patient. Ms. Jordan was diagnosed with acute polymorphic psychosis and treated with anti-psychotic medication before being discharged into community care on 28 March 2019. During her recovery, she developed a severe physical fixation, expressing an intense “fear of living with a colostomy.” Ms. Jordan also experienced overwhelming anxiety about what she feared were bowel blockages. Clinical testing revealed that she did not have any physical pathology. However, Ms. Jordan’s general practitioner viewed the symptoms as a direct result of her anxiety.
Expressed desire to end her life upon return to work
Ms. Jordan lodged a WorkCover claim referencing workplace bullying and harassment, which was accepted on 15 May 2019. She commenced a gradual return-to-work plan on 2 July 2019 under a new manager. Initial notes indicated that Ms. Jordan was “a bit anxious” but was “keen to get back to work.” However, she quickly grew frustrated by being allocated menial tasks. Ms. Jordan also expressed to her family that she feared her new manager’s “aggressive” leadership style.
On 27 August 2019, Ms. Jordan sought to make a full return to work after her doctor issued a medical certificate clearing her for unrestricted duties. On that same day, a colleague told human resources and a union representative that Ms. Jordan was experiencing “dark thoughts (suicide).” The colleague made this statement based on a private conversation with Ms. Jordan on 12 August 2019. The colleague said that Ms. Jordan stated she wanted to end her life. Internal staff attempted to log this risk with an external rehabilitation coordinator. However, the specific information regarding suicidality was never successfully transmitted to Ms. Jordan’s manager or her doctor.
Workplace suicide: Employer gave accountant complex budget task
These communication gaps left hospital management unaware of the acute self-harm risk. And on 28 August 2019, Ms. Jordan was assigned a highly complex retroactive budget reconciliation to identify organisational overspend. The task completely overwhelmed her. A colleague who attempted to assist noted she was “taken back by the complexity” of the task. The colleague said that it was one of the most difficult accounts in the entire health service. Ms. Jordan wept continuously through the shift, confiding that she was too terrified to request managerial assistance for fear her supervisor would “belittle her.” The following day, 29 August 2019, Ms. Jordan did not attend work and was discovered deceased at her residence. She was fifty years old.
An independent review by the Coroners Prevention Unit lambasted the communication breakdown. It stated that the handling of her potential suicidality on 27 August 2019 was deeply concerning. The review concluded that had the information been appropriately shared, her return-to-work arrangements should have been immediately reassessed.
Coroner: Health service failed to resolve historical cultural issues
The Coroner’s Court of Victoria delivered the findings of its investigation into Ms. Jordan’s workplace suidice in April 2025. It found that Ballarat Health Services had been formally alerted to widespread institutional issues years prior to her death. In 2016, reviews by external consultants discovered “incidences of bullying, favouritism, excessive workloads and weaknesses in recruitment processes.” The coroner noted that despite these comprehensive assessments occurring, “significant deficiencies…in the workplace culture” were still prevalent at the time of Ms. Jordan’s death.
Coroner’s investigation into the death of Karla Lee Jordan: What were the findings?
The Coroner’s Court of Victoria investigation delivered several definitive findings regarding organisational accountability and workplace safety at Ballarat Health Services. This included:
- Ms. Jordan’s workplace stress was caused by a “suboptimal, if not toxic” operational culture within the finance department. This was the primary catalyst for her psychological decline and workplace suicide.
- The severe gastrointestinal anxieties and perceived physical ailments reported by Ms. Jordan had no organic medical cause. They were a direct physical manifestation of “anxiety and stress she was experiencing.”
- The management of her full return to work was handled “sub-optimally.” It placed an excessively heavy workload on an employee known to be highly fragile.
- The failure to act on a colleague’s report of Ms. Jordan’s suicidal thoughts was a major “missed opportunity” to reevaluate the return-to-work plan.
What resulted from the coroner’s investigation into the workplace suicide?
The Coroner’s Court of Victoria explicitly exonerated Ms. Jordan’s medical practitioners. It found “no want of clinical management or care” on the part of her general practitioner or the community mental health team. Ballarat Health Services complied with a subsequent regulatory improvement notice by engaging external consultants to audit the finance department. The organisation established daily workload management forums and rolled out leadership training to human resources teams.
The coroner stopped short of issuing formal legal directives, acknowledging the extensive remedial steps taken by Ballarat Health Services post-2019. However, the coroner issued a stern warning for the restructured health entity to “remain vigilant” to its workplace culture and the safety of its employees.
Workplace stress FAQs
1. What are the signs of a psychologically unsafe workplace?
A psychologically unsafe workplace is one where employees feel unable to speak up or report mistakes without fear of negative consequences. Psychosocial hazards like intimidation, exclusion or unwarranted criticism are tolerated by leadership. Professional boundaries are frequently ignored, leading to unrealistic expectations, unmanageable workloads and lack of support.
Such behaviours were detailed in the Coroners Court of Victoria investigation into the death of Karla Lee Jordan, who took her own life. Ms. Jordan developed an acute psychological injury due to her “toxic” work environment. This included unrealistic workloads that forced her to work excessive hours and the “aggressive” management of her supervisor. She reported that she was too fearful to request assistance as she thought her supervisor would “belittle” her.
2. What is meant by workplace stress?
Workplace stress is the harmful physical and emotional response when job requirements do not match the worker’s capabilities, resources or needs. It can be caused by excessive workplace pressures, tight deadlines, role ambiguity, lack of autonomy, low job security and insufficient operational support.
When stress becomes chronic, it can lead to workplace suicide. An example of this was revealed in the Coroners Court of Victoria’s investigation into the death of Karla Lee Jordan. Prior to her suicide, Ms. Jordan experienced extreme job-related anxiety due to burnout and aggressive management. The coroner found that Ms. Jordan’s workplace stress was the main reason for her psychological decline and workplace suicide
3. What are the most stressful jobs in Australia?
In its Spotlight Report: Workplace and Industry Distress, Suicide Prevention Australia revealed the sectors with the highest reported levels of distress. The banking, finance and insurance sectors were found to suffer the highest rate of severe distress, with 29% of workers in extreme strain, driven largely by intense workloads (72%). Meanwhile, hospitality and food services had identical extreme distress rates (29%), mostly caused by job insecurity (49%).
Read more: Regulators Crack Down on Workplace Psychosocial Hazards
Have you experienced unfair treatment at work?
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