ARTIsanté 2025 Barometer: Building tradespeople face unprecedented fatigue and psychological distress

After ten consecutive quarters of declining activity, small construction businesses are facing increasingly worrying economic, psychological, and organizational vulnerabilities. The barometer also highlights that these difficulties were already significant before the outbreak of the conflict in the Middle East, as the survey was conducted between December 2025 and January 2026.

Morale has plummeted among building tradespeople

The ARTIsanté 2025 barometer reveals a marked decline in optimism among building tradespeople. Only 38% of business owners say they are optimistic about the future of their company, a decrease of 3 points compared to 2024. Conversely, 33% express pessimism, while 28% say they are unable to comment.

The study also highlights a significant decline in motivation and confidence:

• 16% of craftsmen say they are motivated, compared to 23% in 2024;
• 16% say they are confident, compared to 22% the previous year;
• 35% express a feeling of concern.

The spouses of business owners share similar observations, a sign of the overall impact of the crisis on the family and personal balance of artisans.

Another particularly worrying finding: 43% of the artisans surveyed reported experiencing psychological difficulties during the year 2025. At the same time, 33% indicated that their activity had slowed down and a significant proportion felt that the sustainability of their business was now threatened.

A structural fatigue that affects the heads of small businesses.

The barometer highlights the widespread fatigue among construction workers. By 2025, 54% of business owners feel quite or very tired, an increase of 4 points compared to 2024.

This fatigue is mainly due to a persistent workload overload:

• 48% of respondents work regularly, sometimes every weekend;
• 63% check their emails daily during their holidays;
• 27% take a maximum of two weeks of vacation per year.

The lack of disconnection is becoming a major issue, as 77% of business leaders feel that their professional life encroaches on their private life.

Stress related to workload, administrative responsibilities, lack of economic visibility, and political instability also contributes to this deterioration in working conditions. More than half of tradespeople report feeling stressed, and 87% consider their profession to be mentally demanding.

Sleep disorders are becoming increasingly common.

The survey also highlights a significant decline in sleep quality among construction workers:

• 49% wake up in the middle of the night with difficulty falling back asleep;
• 24% report having difficulty falling asleep;
• 40% wake up early in the morning and are unable to fall back asleep.

These indicators reflect an ever-increasing professional commitment, often at the expense of rest and work-life balance.

Despite the crisis, a strong attachment to the profession remains

Despite this difficult economic climate, building tradespeople remain strongly committed to their profession. The barometer reveals that:

• 66% of craftsmen declare themselves totally fulfilled in their profession;
• 58% say they are fulfilled in their role as business leaders.

These results illustrate the resilience of the building trades sector, while highlighting the limitations of a model weakened by the accumulation of economic and administrative constraints.

CAPEB calls for strong responses to support craftsmen

For CAPEB, this ARTIsanté 2025 barometer is a real wake-up call for the entire building sector. Tradespeople are now expressing an urgent need for economic visibility, administrative simplification, and recognition of their role in local communities.

Faced with this situation, CAPEB and IRIS-ST are working to implement concrete actions, including a toolbox dedicated to the mental health of craftsmen, awareness campaigns and exchanges with specialist doctors identified by the PRO BTP occupational observatory.

CAPEB will also take advantage of the Building Trades Meetings by CAPEB, organized from June 24 to 26 in Marseille, to offer the 2.000 participants a time for discussion devoted to sleep disorders among building tradespeople.

For Jean-Christophe Repon, president of CAPEB: “As a responsible professional organization, CAPEB fully acknowledges the alarm raised by its members in this survey and, more broadly, since the outbreak of the conflict in the Middle East. True to its values, CAPEB will take all necessary actions to prevent the situation from escalating into widespread burnout. The Government must also act responsibly and provide the sector with the answers it expects. It is unacceptable to allow so many businesses, essential to the vitality of our country, to sink further.”

To learn more about the health, working conditions and challenges faced by construction and landscaping tradespeople, consult the 12th edition of the ARTIsanté 2025 barometer.

Illustrative image of the article via Depositphotos.com.