A BAKERY shop employee was punched and robbed of the day's earnings last Thursday night while in a lift at her home in Jurong West.

At about 11pm, the woman took a lift at Block 696 Jurong West Central with a tan-skinned man in his 20s, according to police.

He pressed the button for fourth floor - two levels below the woman's home. When the lift door opened, he punched the woman in the face and grabbed her handbag before fleeing.

The woman lost about $1,000 in cash and her $250 handphone which were in the bag. Her face was swollen, but she was not hospitalised.

The suspect is about 1.7m tall, with short black hair, according to the victim.