April 24--SINGAPORE (The Straits Times/ANN) -- The hospitality and recreational service sector may be struggling to attract talent, but it is still Singapore's most attractive category to work in, according to a survey of 4,500 employees.

This is the second year the sector has taken the top spot in the annual Randstad Award survey.

The transport and logistics sector comes in second, with banking and financial services in third place.

Results of the survey, conducted by recruitment agency Randstad in December, were released yesterday.

Jobs in the hospitality and recreational service sector are wide-ranging, and include event planning, hotel management and travel agents.

Of the employees surveyed, 32 per cent believe the sector offers a pleasant working atmosphere, 29 per cent see it as providing interesting jobs and 18 per cent think it offers good training.

Randstad's country director for Singapore, Mr Michael Smith, said the sector attracts those looking for an exciting and fast-moving career that also offers flexibility. He also highlighted the importance for companies to shape their image as employers and understand the needs of job-seekers so as to attract talent.

"This industry is booming -- 14.4 million tourists visited Singapore last year and with the development of more attractions and hotels in Singapore, the country's tourism and hospitality sector is set to grow further," he said. "With this growth comes heightened competition for talent."

He added that government initiatives to attract and retain talent, such as the Job Flexibility for Productivity programme, have contributed to the appeal of the industry.

This programme allows hotel employees to work in different jobs within the same establishment.

Ms Jasmine Wong, a duty manager at Holiday Inn Singapore Atrium, said that there was "no dull day" at her workplace.

"Generally, people here are very fun-loving and our customer profiles are very varied. We meet different people every day and learn how to handle different customers," the 24-year-old said.

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