Macau Casinos Employing 108,000 Workers, More Hiring Expected

Posted on: July 8, 2019, 03:17h. 

Last updated on: July 8, 2019, 03:53h.

Devin O'Connor @CasinoorgDevinO Read More
Expertise: Asia Pacific Gaming, Commercial Gaming, Legislation, Politics.

Macau casinos are currently employing around 108,000 people, and that number is expected to only increase in the coming years with new MICE space (meetings, incentives, conventions, exhibitions).

Macau casinos jobs gambling career
Macau business is booming, and that’s good for those in search of employment. (Image: Bloomberg)

Hiring by the Special Administrative Region’s six licensed casinos – Sands, MGM, Wynn, Galaxy Entertainment, Melco, and SJH Holdings – was tallied by Macau Business.

The financial media outlet says Sands is the largest employer with more than 28,000 workers. Galaxy is next at 21,000 staff members, then it’s SJM (20,400), Melco (15,775), Wynn (12,500), and MGM (10,375).

Macau Business says the employee count was “an unprecedented collection” of the workforce created by the world’s richest gambling hub.

Industry Thriving

Macau is the only place in China where gambling is permitted. The market has undergone a renaissance of sorts over the past few years following People’s Republic President Xi Jinping’s crackdown of VIP junket groups that cater to the mainland’s wealthiest citizens.

As a result of fewer VIPs in town, Macau casinos have diversified their attractions in an effort to appeal to a wider demographic. That, paired with last year’s opening of the Hong Kong to Macau 34-mile bridge over the Pearl River Delta, has led to greater numbers of mass market visitors.

It’s exactly what both federal and local officials have desired. The government is expected to promote non-gaming incentives that entice the casinos to invest in developments that aren’t tied to their casinos.

The nearby Hengqin Island is being targeted for MICE development. Sands has long held interest in building additional hotels and convention facilities on the much larger island.

In its recent presentation to investors, Sands said it expects Hengqin Island will receive upwards of $20 billion in investments in the coming years. That will include more than 5,000 new hotel rooms.

Hengqin is offering a reduced corporate tax rate of 15 percent, which is 10 percent less than the average rate throughout China. Sands has already opened its $3.2 billion Chimelong International Ocean Resort that features an 800,000 square foot convention.

Gambling remains outlawed in Hengqin.

New Properties

The six casino concession holders are all patiently waiting to see how the 2022 licensing process will play out. The permits are all expiring at the same time that year.

Macau is expected to issue all six new gaming permits, but under what new regulations remains unclear. MGM and SJM were recently afforded a two-year pushback from their scheduled 2020 expirations to 2022 in order to fall into line with the four others.

SJM is finally inching closer to opening its first integrated casino resort on the Cotai Strip where the enclave’s wealthiest gamblers are now playing. The $4.6 billion Grand Lisboa Palace will come with 2,000 guestrooms, and 90 percent of the property’s more than 1.7 million square feet of space will be devoted to non-gaming.

The casino resort is expected to around 1,500 people. SJM says it is holding a job fair on July 16.