Gen Y chuck the most fake sickies

People who take fake sick days are likely to be unhappy at work. They're also more likely to be young, new research shows.

Young workers chuck more fake sickies than the rest of the population, new research has found. (AAP)

Young workers chuck more fake sickies than the rest of the population, new research has found.

An online poll by the University of Melbourne found that 43 per cent of workers aged 18 to 24 had admitted to faking a sick day this year, compared with about 30 per cent for other age groups.

The survey of 1,000 Australians also found full-time workers were more likely to fake a sick day than part-timers, and were also more susceptible to Mondayitis.

Unsurprisingly, people who fake sick days are less likely to want to bounce out of bed for work on Monday morning. They also account for about 45 per cent of those surveyed.

"The research suggests that people who are taking fake sick days are doing so because they're unhappy about something at work, and that's leading to this type of withdrawal behaviour," Melbourne University's Professor of Management Peter Gahan said on Wednesday.

"We've got a significant proportion of people, just under half of those surveyed, who are unhappy at work.

"Managers perhaps need to be able to provide opportunities for employees to voice dissatisfaction but they also need to be willing to find ways to be responsive to that."