FAMILY responsibilities, job interviews and hangovers are amongst the most popular reasons for pulling a "sickie", a survey suggests.

A third of Scots workers (34 per cent) have admitted "skiving off" work for at least a day in the last year, a survey of 270 people by PricewaterhouseCoopers found.

Among the most popular reasons are family responsibilities (32 per cent), interviews (28 per cent), hangovers (26 per cent), being bored with your job (25 per cent), romance (20 per cent), good weather (14 per cent) and Mondays (10 per cent).

While only 8% admitted to taking time off to watch sport, PwC said this figure could rise with the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow and the Ryder Cup in Gleneagles this year.

"Illness" was the preferred excuse given to employers, particularly stomach problems, but others included a rash from eating strawberries, a lost dog, a wrong turn on a weekend away, and a tree blocking the driveway.

The financial impact could be as much as £26 million, PwC said.

Erika Campbell, human resources director at PwC in Scotland, said: "This should be a wake-up call for businesses. Employers need to use both carrot and stick. If it's very easy to call in sick, or you don't even need to call at all, then people are more likely to abuse the system."