Shop workers are worst for pulling a sickie

TEACHERS, nurses and doctors are the workers least likely to ‘pull a sickie’, a report has found.

But shop staff, tour guides and gym trainers are among those who pretend to be ill most often.

Fewer than one in four teachers admitting lying about the reason for missing work, but more than three quarters of shop workers did, according to the survey by property firm Savoy Stewart.

After retail, staff in the leisure, sports and tourism sector were most likely to call in sick when they want a day in bed.

HR staff, responsible for managing and controlling absences in larger businesses, were third on the list.

At the other end of the scale – after teachers and health care professionals – workers in science and pharmaceuticals, transport and social care were least likely to fake an illness.

The survey, compiled from replies by 2,160 workers, was carried out to mark National Sickie Day yesterday.

The first Monday in February is reputed to be the day most likely for workers to call in sick. Last year as many as 350,000 people took the day off, it is claimed.

More than a quarter of those who call in sick cite food poisoning, and around one in eight claim to have flu. ‘Migraines’ are also popular, the report found.

In one in five cases the real reason for an inability to get out of bed is a hangover. But nearly a third said they were either too tired or ‘couldn’t be bothered’ to go to work, while one in five said they had told their boss they ‘needed a mental health day’.