By Almira Louise S. Martinez, Reporter

MUSTA, a workforce sustainability platform, is helping companies identify early signs of employee burnout, as workplace stress among Filipino workers remains above regional and global averages.

"The problem that we encounter is that we usually see burnout when it's too late," MUSTA co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer Patricia Parungao told BusinessWorld via Zoom. "Usually, we see it in resignations and late exit interviews already. What we want is to be in the preventive side of things, wherein we can see the signs earlier and prevent disengagement, performance drop, or even resignations."

The World Health Organization (WHO) defines burnout as a syndrome resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed. It is characterized by exhaustion, increased mental distance from one's job, and reduced professional efficacy. Burnout is also listed in the WHO's International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11) as an occupational phenomenon, though it is not classified as a medical condition.

The scale of the problem in the Philippines is well documented. In Gallup's Global Workplace 2026 Report, 50% of Filipino workers said they experienced stress "a lot of the day" — twice the regional average of 25% and above the global average of 40%. That share has also risen from 45% in 2022, according to the report.

A separate study by Agile Data Solutions, Inc. found that 22.5% of surveyed employees felt "somewhat drained," while 11.61% said they were "completely exhausted" midway through the year.

For companies, prolonged workplace stress can translate into lower productivity and higher employee turnover.

For Philippine employers, workplace mental health is also a matter of legal expectation. The Mental Health Act (Republic Act No. 11036), signed in 2018, directs employers to develop and implement mental health policies and programs in the workplace.

"Globally, it costs companies over $300 billion in lost productivity due to burnout," MUSTA Chief Executive Officer and head of product development Aden Carreon told BusinessWorld. She also said 20% of employees are expected to leave voluntarily this year, adding to the costs of burnout.

MUSTA aims to address the problem through software that combines employee wellness monitoring with access to professional support. The platform uses daily employee check-ins to track how workers are feeling, then analyzes the responses and generates a risk score, letting employers identify team-level patterns and potential drivers of burnout. The company said its system is designed to provide employers with aggregated workforce insights while maintaining employee privacy.

Such daily check-ins involve the collection of employee data, an area governed in the Philippines by the Data Privacy Act of 2012, which is enforced by the National Privacy Commission and sets rules for how personal information is collected and processed.

"MUSTA feels like a personal wellness companion, so not just another human resource tool," Ms. Carreon said.

Beyond the digital check-ins, the platform connects employees with professionals including psychologists, financial coaches, and nutritionists.

"We want to focus on prevention, but we also want to offer full support if employees choose to seek professional help," Ms. Carreon said.

MUSTA describes its approach as a closed-loop system, in which employee feedback is used to identify workplace risks and connect workers with appropriate support.

Since its launch in April, the platform has covered 800 to 1,000 employees across three enterprise clients, Ms. Carreon said. The company aims to reach at least 10,000 employees by the end of the year — roughly a tenfold increase from its current coverage, and the near-term test of demand for preventive burnout tools among Philippine employers.

MUSTA also plans to expand outside the Philippines, with Thailand targeted for entry in 2028 and at least five more Southeast Asian markets by 2030.

The company's expansion plans come as employers across the region face increasing pressure to address employee well-being while maintaining productivity and retaining workers.