Macau-based workers union, the Macau Gaming Industry Employees Home, released figures this week showing that most former junket employees affected by the closure of the city’s VIP rooms remain unemployed, while those to have changed jobs mostly work in retail or as cab drivers and delivery drivers. However, few are earning the same pay as previously while many are still owed termination compensation.
According to the data, from a survey conducted in March last year, 85.1% of respondents said at the time that they were yet to find more work. While many have since found positions, the union noted that 70% of former VIP staff took more than six months to return to work.
“As former VIP staff continue to seek new jobs and Macau’s economy has recently recovered, the majority of former VIP staff are now employed, but there is still a gap between their jobs and their previous jobs,” it said.
“Many former VIP staff are still owed tens of thousands of dollars in termination compensation by their former companies.”
The union noted former VIP staff had reflected that the Macau court had ruled their employers needed to pay the compensation, but because of their former employers’ debts and uncertainty over their financial situation, the former VIP staff were afraid it would be difficult to recover money owed to them.
The union said, “Many former employees are facing family and financial pressure, and hope to work again in jobs related to the gaming industry, hoping that gaming companies will give priority to recruiting related people.”
Since the closure of Suncity Group in December 2021, most other VIP rooms in Macau have also closed, causing VIP staff to lose their jobs.
As a result, a series of issues regarding termination compensation have arisen. Some VIP employees who worked in the industry for more than 10 years are known to be entitled to compensation of more than MOP$200,000 but have not been able to recover it so far.
According to the Macau Gaming Industry Employees Home, a total of 192 requests for assistance were followed up last year, of which 143 were new cases. Of those, 30.8% were related to job hunting, 20.9% were “family and parent-child related problems” and 16.1% were “personal psychological and emotional problems”.
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