GAMING | FMG hands petition to Galaxy, demands adjustment in salary scheme

Following the protest staged outside Venetian Macao last week, the Forefront of Macau Gaming (FMG) rallied its supporters yesterday to gather outside the commercial building in NAPE that houses the human resources department of Galaxy Entertainment Group (GEG). There, they submitted a petition, as well as more than 150 individual letters and demands to the representative of the casino operator.
FMG claimed that more than 500 people came and supported the group’s action. FMG president Ieong Man Teng stated that more actions will follow if GEG fail to provide an appropriate response.
“We submit this petition to address the fact that the salaries of GEG are disrespectful to some of its employees. This is because the salary level of the group has always been low and [the dissatisfaction of] its staff members has existed for quite some time. This has led to today’s events [yesterday], where they came together and submitted their demands to the human resources department of GEG.”
Some of the contents of the petition include the demand for GEG to introduce the wage-
by-age system, which allows the salaries of employees to gradually increase, following the growth of their time serving GEG, as well as adding an annual bonus equal to two months of salary.
It also asks for a starting salary of MOP23,000 for pit supervisors, and MOP33,000 for pit managers.
Ieong Man Teng claimed that the starting salary for GEG dealers has always been lower than other casino operators. Their major demand is to adjust the salaries of different positions, from dealer to pit manager, so that the casino can ably battle inflation.
“In fact, throughout these years, there has been significant growth in GDP and the casino operators. They have profited so much, but still cannot provide a level of salary and benefit that can keep up with inflation.
“We hope that casino operators can take up their responsibility and protect their frontline employees through adjusting their salaries.”
He said that FMG has given GEG a deadline to respond to. He wants the company to reply to their demand before Thursday, and to send representatives to attend a meeting with FMG so that rank-and-file workers can talk to them.
If Galaxy does not agree to the meeting, Ieong Man Teng said that they would visit the Labour Affairs Bureau on Friday and even rally protest next week.
“It depends on the response of the company and whether the reply is sufficient,” Mr Ieong said.
He added that GEG should at least dispatch some senior managerial staff members who are responsible for the management of multiple departments, so that FMG can speak to them. “There should be at least several senior managers able to have a meeting with us, and then we will be satisfied and accept it.”
Ieong Man Teng was also asked if his organization will take action against a third casino operator. He said that it depends on the will of the staff members and whether the benefits and compensations of other operators can protect their employees.
“We will have to see if the employees feel like they are being exploited by their companies. If they feel like this, I believe that [FMG] will also help other staff members to take action in the hope of achieving a wage adjustment.”
In a statement released last night, the vice president of Public Relations from GEG, Buddy Lam, said that the casino operator “regrets and is deeply concerned regarding the event that took place [yesterday].”
The vice president claimed that GEG “constantly maintains an open communication channel with [its] team members to encourage resolving problems with a tolerant and appropriate attitude.”
The group, he said, will address the questions “that were brought forward with the team members directly,” and he is confident that the current situation can be resolved through internal communication.

staff member complains about wage inequality

A GEG employee, Mr Mak, who has been a pit supervisor in the group’s casino for four years, claims that most of the employees are upset by the fact that staff members are not receiving equal salaries, despite working in the same position. He said that the salary of a pit supervisor can range from MOP22,000 to more than MOP27,000. He also claimed that, in some cases, the salary of a pit supervisor and a pit manager might only differ by less than MOP1,000. “This is totally unreasonable,” he remarked. Mr Mak said that GEG has to explain the wage inequality.