HR group: Gov’t should subsidize employment of local workers

Subsidies may be given to local businesses to help them with the salary costs of local workers and encourage them to hire more staff, Chui Chin Man, executive director of Macao Human Resources Association (MHRA), has said.

The MHRA leader also suggested that policies should be made to incentivize employers to cancel their non-resident worker quotas.

Moreover, there should be measures to support the job-seeking efforts of fresh university graduates, a report by public broadcaster TDM quoted the group leader as saying.

Meanwhile, the report cited Ip Kuai Peng, director of the Research Centre for Macau Social and Economic Development, who is expecting the unemployment rate to increase further.

The academic told the TV station that the transformation of the gambling industry and the continuation of the Covid-19 pandemic may cause the unemployment rate to continue to rise.

However, he hinted locals should take this chance to reconsider their career path. He thinks the transformation of the gambling industry, especially the restructuring of ‘satellite casinos,’ has prompted industry workers to consider their occupational mobility. “They should work more on their career transitions or transformations,” Ip said.

Information from the government’s Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that both the general unemployment rate (3.3%) and the unemployment rate of local residents (4.3%) for the period from December 2021 to February 2022 had increased by 0.1% from the preceding period. Meanwhile, the underemployment rate dropped by 0.3% to 2.9%.

Previously, the Women’s General Association of Macau called on the government to set up more training and hands-on support for the unemployed.

The association foresees that the pandemic’s impact on the local labor market is expected to linger for some time, which will affect many families economically. The group therefore hopes that more training and internship packages can be established to help the unemployed, so that they have a better chance of making it through tough economic times.