• 30% of employees have or would call in sick to miss work, despite feeling healthy

• However, cases of actual staff burnout and mental health concerns are on the rise

• Childcare is another factor behind growing number of sick days for employees  

Almost a third (30%) of employees admit they have or would consider ‘pulling a sickie’ to miss work, despite feeling healthy, according to research from protection and employee benefits provider, MetLife UK

As National Sickie Day, February 3rd 2025, approaches, which is the day when most workers are likely to phone in sick - coined in 2011 by a British law firm ELAS. MetLife’s research explores some of the key reasons why employees would seek time off work. 40% admitted they feel burned out, rising to 47% for women compared to 31% of men. Many also cite needing time away from the workplace as their sick day excuse.

Some also feel they need extra time off work last minute due to personal circumstances. Almost a quarter (23%) say they took time off to attend a necessary appointment, while one in six (17%) did so due to emergency childcare issues, and 15% to care for a relative. 

Top reasons why employees have or would ‘pull a sickie’ to skip working:

Of those who have previously called in sick, 45% have taken up to a week off. A third (31%) have taken up to three days, and 17% have taken less than a day. 

Adrian Matthews, Head of Employee Benefits at MetLife UK commented: “Stress, declining productivity and a lack of engagement continue to be a significant challenge for many employees contributing to increasing absenteeism in the UK.

“While taking pre-arranged and paid time off work is crucial for employee well-being, it’s essential to understand the underlying reasons for increased sick leave – both genuine illness and sickie days. These absences can stem from a variety of factors, including mental health concerns, financial stress and childcare challenges. Nearly 3 million people are currently out of work with long-term ill-health, and it’s holding businesses and their people back.

Workplace employee health and wellbeing benefits and other supportive policies can greatly support businesses with this, in fact many are designed to provide pre-early intervention, by preventing any illness occurring, but if illness does commence, they can then assist with early intervention to support the worker from going off work sick. By deploying regular, effective and varied communication about all the employee benefits they offer we believe that both genuine illness and some “sickie days” can be minimised. 

“Prioritising mental health is key! When you aren’t 100% mentally, going to work can feel hard. As an employee, if you’re ever worried or concerned about your mental health in the work place, it’s important to explore what employee benefits your employer offers, there may be support.

At MetLife, we work alongside businesses to offer Group Income Protection, which helps support employees through health and sickness, with gamified wellbeing tools, as well as early intervention, rehabilitation, recovery and return-to-work support. Our aim is for the group income protection product to enhance employee wellbeing and empower employers to ‘keep work working’.”