The number of underemployed workers in Macau’s gaming and junket industry decreased significantly in January, down by 2,500 workers to 11,900 according to information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC).
The latest figures are for the period running from November to January and represent a 17.4% decrease in underemployed when compared to the October to December period. DSEC described it as a “notable drop”.
Meanwhile, the number of unemployed in Macau fell by 400 to 12,800 in the November to January, with most of the unemployed having also been previously involved in gaming and junket activities, and the construction sector.
Overall, DSEC noted an increase in the demand for local manpower since the relaxation of border measures on 8 January, with the general unemployment rate falling by 0.1 percentage points to 3.4% and the unemployment rate of local residents falling by 0.2 percentage points to 4.3%. The underemployment rate dropped by 0.7 percentage points to 3.2%.
The labour force living in Macau totalled 373,800 with a labour force participation rate of 68.5%. Total employment was 361,000 and the number of employed residents totalled 282,000, up by 800 and 900 respectively from the previous period, DSEC said.