Some people may be sick, but more than a quarter are faking it

WASHINGTON, DC - Played hooky from work recently? Don't be shy about admitting it. A new survey shows you've got lots of company, and some employers believe stress and burnout are to blame. Not only are employees taking more bogus sick days, they're also getting more creative with the little white lies they tell their bosses.

CareerBuilder’s annual survey on absenteeism shows 29 percent of workers have played hooky from the office this year, calling in sick when they were well at least once. Twenty-seven percent of employers think they are seeing an increase in bogus sick excuses from employees due to continued stress and burnout caused by the weak economy. The nationwide survey was conducted between August 17 and September 2, 2010 and included more than 3,100 workers and more than 2,400 employers.

While the majority of employers said they believe their workers when they say they’re feeling under the weather, 29 percent reported they have checked up on an employee who called in sick and 16 percent said they have fired a worker for missing work without a proven excuse. Of the employers who checked up on an employee, 70 percent said they required the employee to show them a doctor’s note. While, half called the employee at home, 18 percent had another worker call the employee and 15percent drove by the employee’s house or apartment.

( CNN Newsource and careerbuilder.com contributed to this report.)