The 115 employers were considered a good indicator of the state of Hawai'i's economy, which, as measured by its jobless rate, remains steady despite a weakened tourism sector.

"It's a very good sign," said Mike Fitzgerald, president and chief executive of Enterprise Honolulu, of yesterday's job fair. "It's probably some indication that our economy is doing better than the Mainland."

Hawai'i's jobless rate rose to 3.4 percent in March after hitting a 12-year low of 3 percent the month before.

Because many unemployed are not counted in the jobless rate, economists say the rate is better used for spotting trends rather than as a true measure of the out-of-work. Still, Hawai'i's rate is well below the nationwide average of 6.2 percent in March.

Roughly 5,000 people wearing aloha shirts, business attire and in some cases shorts and T-shirts attended the Workforce 2003 job fair, now in its sixth year.

Inside the center, insurance companies, educational institutions, restaurants, hospitals and government agencies vied for attention.

Both the number of employers and attendees topped last year's high of 90 businesses and estimated 4,000 job seekers. Overall, it was also the best attendance for the event since May 2001 when a record 9,000 people participated.

But jobs weren't necessarily plentiful for all skill levels as Emmanul David could attest. David, who is working toward a master's of business administration degree, was looking for a management or supervisory job. But for David, who recently left the military, his search was made harder by a lack of business experience.

"If you have experience, the jobs are out there," said David, who considered applying for work at a bank or rental car agency. "For now, the salary doesn't matter. I just need some type of management experience."

Among the more popular employers yesterday were city and government agencies, including local police departments, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Army National Guard.

"I think some of that has to do with the stability of a government job," explained Mark Moccia, a senior parol agent recruiting for the U.S. Border Patrol. "That's one thing I don't have to worry about is getting laid off."

Moccia expected to receive about 100 applications for border patrol openings in the southwestern United States. He couldn't specify how many spots the agency had for the jobs, which pay from $45,000 to $48,000 within a year.

"We're looking to grow," Moccia said, partly in response to increased security demands after 9-11.

Absent yesterday was any large presence by Hawai'i's high-tech industry, a fact lamented by Felix Tapia, a hardware engineer who has been laid off twice since Sept. 11.

Tapia, out of work for four months, said he had no thoughts of leaving Hawai'i for Mainland opportunities.

"That's the price you pay for living in paradise," he said. "I have a wife who's going to law school here.

"This is home."