Stranded migrants | Advisor urges gov’t to subsidize dismissed workers to return home

The deputy-coordinator of the advisory body of the central district, Jacky Chui Ming Man, has urged the local government to fund flights for stranded blue card workers who want to return to their hometowns.
After the pandemic hit Macau, thousands of non-local workers were laid off – which led to a sharp drop in the number of non-resident workers in the city.
In December 2020, Macau was home to 112,214 mainland blue card holders, 10,140 fewer than the figure of the same period in 2019, 122,354. This decline was mainly driven by the reduced number of workers coming into Macau from the mainland.
However, many non-resident workers are still stranded in the region without employment, as some of the dismissed workers are not only unable to return home, but are also prohibited, by law, from being employed.
As cited in a report by Macao Daily News, Chui made a proposal to the government to help such former blue card workers who are confronting severe difficulties.
Chui specifically recommended that the government allocate money from the social security fund to subsidize these stranded workers.
According to the law on the employment of non-local workers, employers are required to contribute 200 patacas per month to the social security fund for each non-resident employee. However, employers of domestic helpers are exempted from this obligation.
The community advisor argued that the majority of the non-mainland-China laid-off blue-card workers have been unable to return to their home country, as there are no flights.
He said that these laid-off workers need to renew their staying permit while they are still in Macau.
In Chui’s opinion, without an income, it is difficult for these workers to afford rent and to live in the city.
Chui acknowledged the tremendous contributions blue-card workers have been making to the prosperity of the Macau SAR. As a result, he proposed that the government should fund trips home for laid-off workers who are financially disadvantaged.
Recently, Secretary for Security Wong Sio Chak reported that, in 2020, the local immigration authority issued a temporary staying permit to 241 individuals, including some laid-off blue-card workers who were stranded in the city.
At the end of 2020, 22 passengers onboard a flight to Vietnam were in possession of the temporary staying permit.
Chui is not the first advisor to advocate for more government help for stranded dismissed workers.
Previously, lawmaker Agnes Lam also sought answers from the government, hoping that the administration authority could take special measures during exceptional circumstances to facilitate the rehiring of stranded workers. Another lawmaker, Wang Sai Man, also expressed hope that the SAR government would set up a temporary mechanism to allow SMEs and local families to hire dismissed and stranded non-resident workers.