“Our understanding is that game staff at some Kotai resorts, such as Galaxy Macau and Venice Macau, have already been instructed to stand by for overtime,” Ray Iokpo, director of labor group Power of Macau Gaming, told 경마.
Galaxy Macau, run by Galaxy Entertainment Group, and Venice Macau, run by Sands China, a property in the Kotai region, are two of Macau’s largest casino resorts. GGRASIA has approached companies for comment on Ray Labor’s claims regarding the employer’s request for overtime.
“We comply with all labor laws and regulations of the Macau SAR government, including when we allocate workload to game floor team members to meet operational needs during the Chinese New Year holiday,” Sands China said in an emailed response.
Separately, Chloe Chao Shaopong, head of the New Macau Game Employees’ Rights Association, a local game labor movement organization, told GGRAcia, “There have been many cases of table game staff being deployed in other departments such as security and cage operations over the past two years when game floor traffic was weak.”
She said, “Now we need table game staff again. But it goes without saying that some of them may not yet want to return to that role.”
Mr. Chao said, “It seems that the hands of the employees are quite tight in the game room during this Chinese New Year.”
Macau’s tourism boss Maria Helena de Sena Fernandez said at the weekend that daily visitors to Macau during the Chinese New Year could peak at 60,000 although many game industry analysts warn that the number itself is not a proxy for Macau’s casino gross game revenue (GGR) performance.
China’s State Council has designated a holiday period for mainland residents from Jan. 21 on Saturday to Jan. 27 on Friday. The festival period in Hong Kong, another important source market for Macau tourists, has been designated to run from Jan. 23 to Jan. 25.
Macau Gaming’s Power Ray suggested to GGRAcia that some casino floor employees were told they might cancel their scheduled break days during the festival.
But he said, “The good news is… At least the casino frontline staff are now relieved…I added. As they did during the COVID-19 pandemic, they said, “Sometimes you won’t have to take unpaid leave.”