Samsung Electronics was named the third most preferred employer in the world, according to a Dutch research firm Friday.

In an announcement for the Randstad Award 2014 report, which ranks the most attractive companies among job seekers, Randstad said Samsung came third among the eligible 50 firms, following German carmaker BMW and Japanese electronics giant Sony.

Of the 195,018 respondents including college students and workers from 23 countries around the world which were surveyed from September to December in 2013, around 85 percent said they were aware of the Korean tech firm and 57.1 percent answered that they wished to work for the company.

The world’s largest maker of smartphones, meanwhile, was named the most attractive workplace in Canada, Hong Kong and France, the report said.

Around 61 percent of those surveyed who were aware of BMW said they wished to work for the German carmaker, and Sony held a comparable figure of 59.7 percent.

Competitive salary and employee benefits, long-term job security, pleasant working atmosphere, and a good work-life balance were the most important factors for job seekers when choosing a workplace.

By industry sector, the IT industry gained the highest points in attractiveness with 56 percent of the respondents saying they would like to work in the sector, followed by the life sciences, consulting and automotive sectors.

By Kim Young-won and news reports
(wone0102@heraldcorp.com)