Five years after the Covid pandemic, nearly a third Brits have admitted to fake Covid in order to get a sick-day.

The first UK lockdown will be announced in March 2020. A brand new survey shows how many people have used Covid-19 to take time off.

In Britain, three out of ten people have lied to get time off work by claiming they had contracted Covid.

According to a new study conducted by experts in flexible workspace Office Freedom , almost a third (33%) of those surveyed admitted that they had faked a positive test for the virus.

This news comes five years after the first announcement of lockdown in the UK span font-weight=”400 ;”>, March 2020.

When asked if they have ever faked a positive test for Covid to get out of work, 29,3% admit that they have. However, 69.3% claim to never have done so.

The biggest offenders were men, who admitted to 34% of the lies. Only a quarter said they had lied to their employers.

The worst offenders in the country are the electricians, who have 80% of them admitting to using the excuse. They were followed by those employed in the advertising/media sector (77%) and the estate agents (75%).

One out of ten workers admitted to using the fake COVID-19 disease as an excuse to avoid work more than once. This shows how workers will use any excuse to get away from their jobs.

Have you ever called in sick for Covid even though you had not tested positive?

• 
  Yes: 29.3%
  
• 
  No: 69.3%
  
• 
  Repeatedly: 10.7%
  

Top 5 professions that faked a positive Covid test in order to get sick

1. 
   Electrician: 80%
   
2. 
   Advertising/media: 77%
   
3. 
   Estate agent: 75%
   
4. 
   Broadcasters: 69%
   
5. 
   Bank worker: 60%
   

According to the survey, cold/flu was the second most common reason for people calling in sick. This was followed by nausea/vomiting and period pain.

Top 5 reasons to call in sick at work

1. 
   Cold/flu: 15.4%
   
2. 
   Nausea/vomiting: 12.21%
   
3. 
   Migraine: 7.5%
   
4. 
   Family Emergency: 7.4%
   
5. 
   Period Pain: 3.5%
   

The research was conducted between 27.01.2025 and 29.01.2025 by Censuswide, with UK respondents from 2001 (Nat Reps 16+).

Censuswide adheres to and employs members of the Market Research Society, which is based upon the ESOMAR Principles.

> Censuswide is also a member of the British Polling Council.

The original HR News article Nearly one third of Brits admitted to fake Covid in order to get a sick-day five years after the pandemic struck the UK appeared.