Macao gaming operators requested to put labels on imported front-line casino staff

Imported labors working in Macao’s casinos will soon be required to wear different uniforms or badges, which will distinguish them from local ones, the Macao Post Daily reported on Wednesday.

Under current casino regulations of the Special Administrative Region (SAR) government, only local residents are allowed to work as croupiers, but imported workers may be hired by casino companies as croupiers‘ supervisors, pit managers and other gaming positions.

The SAR government had already requested the six local gaming operators to submit proposals on how and when to implement the so called „clear identification“ of their front-line casino employees as local or imported labor, the daily quoted Shuen Ka Hung, director of the Labor Affairs Bureau (DSAL) of the SAR, as saying.

Shuen made the announcement Tuesday after a closed-door meeting with representatives of the human resources departments of Macao’s six gaming operators, namely SJM, Galaxy, Venetian, Wynn, Melco PBL, and MGM Grand Paradise.

The director also said that the requirement would not apply to administration staff and workers involved in outsourced services, such as cleaners and security guards.

The Venetian Macao, the largest local casino resort, employed 14,149 local workers and 16,492 imported ones last year, while SJM,which owns 19 of Macao’s 30 casinos, hired 16,324 local and 1,136 imported workers, according to the latest figures from the DSAL.

The move came after Galaxy sacked some local employees earlier this month, bringing up serious repercussions from local communities, and prompting the SAR government to step up its measures to protect local workers, which included providing betterprofessional trainings to local croupiers.

The six gaming operators had already reached a consensus on submitting a professional training proposal to the government on August 18, said Suen, adding that the proposal was meant to find ways to help local casino workers getting promoted to management positions.