Overview

• An iSelect survey of 1,000 workers found seven in ten Australians admitted to faking at least one sick day in the past year, creating 24.6 million lost workdays
• The estimated annual productivity loss from non-illness absences amounts to $7.3 billion for Australian businesses
• Sleep deprivation topped the list of excuses, followed by the desire to relax and the need for mental health breaks
• Workers aged 25 to 34 were the most likely age group to fake sick days, with 84.5% acknowledging non-illness absences
• Gender differences emerged as 26.6% of women used sick days for mental health compared with 19.5% of men, while 12.9% of men cited hangovers versus 8.5% of women