Excuses to call in sick and what to say

30 excuses to call in sick

1. I've had a stomach bug since 3 am, and I can't be more than ten feet from a bathroom.

   Low risk. Nobody wants to hear more, so nobody asks.

2. I woke up with a migraine, and looking at a screen makes it worse.

   Low risk. It also explains why you won't be answering messages.

3. I think it was the shrimp at the team lunch.

   High risk. They'll check who else had the shrimp.

4. I've got a fever of 101, and I'd rather not give it to the whole floor.

   Low risk. Offering to protect everyone else ends the conversation.

5. I threw my back out putting on my socks.

   Medium risk. They'll laugh, then ask if you can work lying down.

6. I've lost my voice. I can type, but I can't run the 10 am.

   High risk. They'll say you can join on mute and type in the chat.

7. I had a reaction to yesterday's flu shot, and everything aches.

   Medium risk. They'll ask where you got the shot, because they still need one.

8. I've got pink eye in both eyes, and I look like I cried through the quarterly numbers.

   Low risk. Nobody wants it, and nobody wants to see it on camera.

9. I've caught whatever my kids brought home from daycare.

   Low risk. Every parent in the office knows that bug by name.

10. It was a gas station burrito, and I know.

    Medium risk. They'll say they know too, and ask nothing else.

11. I pulled something at the gym, and I can't sit in a chair.

    High risk. They'll offer you a standing desk.

12. I've got a sinus infection, and I sound like I'm talking through a sock.

    Medium risk. They'll want to hear it, so call instead of texting.

13. I think it's the norovirus that's going around my son's school.

    Low risk. Say norovirus and people lean away from the phone.

14. I slept on my neck wrong, and I can only look left.

    High risk. They'll seat you on the right side of the table.

15. I'm taking a mental health day, and I'll be back tomorrow.

    Medium risk. They'll say take care, or ask what's wrong. Either way, you learn which manager you have.

16. I cut my hand cooking last night, and with the stitches I can't type.

    High risk. They'll ask to see the stitches on camera.

17. My hay fever is so bad I can't keep my eyes open.

    High risk. They'll tell you to take an antihistamine and log on.

18. I've got shingles.

    Low risk. They'll look it up, see the pictures, and never ask again.

19. I've had a tension headache since they gave us the new chairs.

    High risk. They'll forward it to facilities, and facilities will want you in to try a chair.

20. I've got an ear infection, and the room won't stop tilting.

    Low risk. They'll picture you on a boat and tell you to lie down.

21. I think I'm passing a kidney stone, and I'm at urgent care.

    High risk. Anyone on the team who has had one will want to compare notes.

22. I've got a stye, and one eye is swollen shut.

    Low risk. It's small enough to believe and bad enough to stay home.

23. I was up at 4 with a nosebleed that wouldn't stop, and I'm wiped out.

    Medium risk. They'll ask if you've seen a doctor. Say you're going to.

24. I've got tonsillitis, and swallowing water hurts.

    Low risk. It sounds too specific to be made up.

25. My asthma is bad today, and the pollen count is off the charts.

    Medium risk. They'll ask if you have your inhaler.

26. I've got a cold sore the size of a quarter, and I'm not doing a client call like this.

    High risk. They'll say the client won't notice. The client will notice.

27. I had a tooth pulled this morning, and I'm on the good painkillers.

    Medium risk. They'll agree you shouldn't be on a client call.

28. I stepped on a nail, had a tetanus shot, and now my arm won't lift.

    Medium risk. They'll ask where the nail was.

29. My GP has signed me off until Thursday.

    Low risk. A doctor's name on it ends the questions.

30. I've got a chest infection, and I cough like a car that won't start.

    Medium risk. They'll hear it in the first five seconds of the call.

How to call in sick

1. Check the handbook. Your contract or handbook says who to tell and by when.
2. Call before your shift starts, if you can.
3. Say you’re sick and won’t be in today. Leave the symptoms out.
4. Decide about the laptop first. If your team can work from home, expect “could you log on for an hour”, and have your answer ready before you dial.
5. Say when you’ll update them, and point to anything due today.
6. Post nothing. One photo from the beach at 11 am cancels any excuse.

If you can last until lunch, excuses to leave work early cost you an afternoon of leave and keep the sick day in the bank.

Attendance points and late calls

Some attendance policies run on points. Arriving late earns a few, and a sick call made at the last minute earns as many as turning up hours late. So anyone running very late calls in instead. It costs the same points and saves the commute.

Sick leave rules in the US, UK and Australia

None of these rules covers a burst pipe or a court date. That’s the appeal of excuses to get out of work that leave your health out of it.

Sick leave in the US

There’s no federal paid sick leave in the US. The Family and Medical Leave Act gives up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave in a 12-month period for a serious health condition. You qualify after 12 months and 1,250 hours with an employer that has 50 or more staff within 75 miles.

Paid sick time comes from the states. 17 of them and DC have a law, and Virginia’s starts in July 2027 for employers with 50 or more staff, then covers every employer by 2029. 81% of private-sector workers have paid sick leave, from 58% in leisure and hospitality to 98% in finance and insurance.

Statutory Sick Pay and fit notes in the UK

Since April 6, 2026, Statutory Sick Pay starts on your first day off instead of your fourth. It pays £123.25 a week, or 80% of your average weekly earnings if that’s less, for up to 28 weeks.

For 7 days or fewer, you confirm you were ill yourself, which is called self-certification. After more than 7 days in a row, weekends and bank holidays included, you need a fit note. A GP or hospital doctor, a registered nurse, an occupational therapist, a pharmacist or a physiotherapist can write one.

Sick leave in Australia

Full-time employees get 10 days of paid sick and carer’s leave a year. Part-timers get a share by hours, and casuals get none. It builds up from your first day and carries over from year to year.

Your employer can ask for evidence even for one day off. A medical certificate or a statutory declaration both count, as long as it would convince a reasonable person.

Sick day excuses people use

The top line American workers use is “not feeling well”, at 23.5%. A stomach bug gets 16.6%, because nobody wants to ask a follow-up question about a stomach bug, and nobody can check.

Some lay the groundwork. 14.4% mention feeling “a bit off” the day before, 17.6% send the message early in the morning, and 10.4% put on a cough or a tired voice. 42% skip the performance and send the message.

Burnout, stress or mental exhaustion is the top reason for calling in sick, at 40.1%. And 36.5% have gone to work ill because they couldn’t afford the lost pay.

Sickie excuses in the UK and Australia

68% of UK workers admit faking at least one sick day in the past year. The reasons: a rest day (41%), errands (35%), shopping (27%), a longer holiday (22%) and dodging a meeting or deadline (14%). Further down, 3% had a new tattoo and 2% had no dog sitter.

In Australia, 70.8% of working-age people called in sick in the past year for something other than physical illness. Lack of sleep led at 33.0%, ahead of a day to relax (27.0%) and a mental health day (23.1%). A hangover was the reason for 12.9% of men and 8.5% of women.

Sick calls on holidays

Sick calls follow the pay. Cut the extra rate for working a public holiday, and the holiday rota fills with sick calls where the volunteers used to be. The memo that comes next is about team players.

National Sickie Day

National Sickie Day falls on the first Monday in February, which was February 2 in 2026. It isn’t an official day. The law firm ELAS coined the name in 2011.

The absence data doesn’t back it up, and two HR firms that count UK sick days can’t agree on the worst day. One ranked 2024’s Sickie Day 112th, with nine of that year’s ten worst days on a Friday. The other has all ten of 2025’s worst days on a Monday, led by January 6. Sickie Day came fourth, its tenth year running without the top spot.

How many sick days people take

Ask UK workers and they took 4.4 sick days each in 2025, 2.0% of working hours. Ask their employers and it was 9.4 days. That leaves five days a year that only the employers remember.