We’re a restless bunch when it comes to work, thanks to having some of the best job opportunities in the country at our disposal.

This is the opinion of a sociology expert after two recent public polls clashed on how happy people in the south east are in their jobs.

A recent survey of 1,700 people claimed 69 per cent of workers in the region are unhappy in their jobs and think about finding a new role at least once a day.

The south east came second only to London for the amount of misery in the office. The survey was conducted by the UK’s largest independent recruitment-agency scoring company HireScores.

However, the news comes shortly after a separate survey looking at how the type of property people work in affects their mood claimed that south east employees were in fact amongst the happiest in the country with their work-life balance.

Professor of sociology at the University of Kent Frank Furedi said the reality was that both had kernels of truth about them, and that professionals in Kent and the rest of the region were frequently spoilt for choice when it came to earning a living.

He said: “People in the south east are much more prone to short-term, career hopping when it comes to their jobs – they tend to see work as more of a means to an end.

“You rarely find people who say they really love their job and will stay in it for the rest of their lives. They often keep looking for different jobs once they have started a new one.

“This is possibly because there are more job opportunities available in the south east, and the region is really at the forefront of the economy, which give people more of a sense of security.”

He added: “People come to the south east for work, not the other way round.”