Leven foresees Macau dealer shortage

Speaking at an investor forum in Las Vegas, Michael Leven, president and chief operating officer of Las Vegas Sands Corp., told UBS and Deutsche Bank delegates that the Macau government needed to change labour laws to prevent a shortage of staff in the future.  

Mr Leven said that, with all the new projects coming online which will need dealers and other hotel staff, he was confident that the government would not allow them to be built without somehow addressing the labour issue.  Currently there is a locals only rule on dealers.  If the government approves the full quota of 3,366 tables between mid-2015 and 2018, it is estimated that another 10,000 dealers would be needed, or a 57 percent increase in the current number.  Local academic Ricardo Siu was quoted as saying that it was not a foregone conclusion that the government would approve the full amount of tables, and that local residents may demand certain concessions as to which jobs were available to foreigners.

Separately, the Macau Construction Association said that the construction industry would need to double its workforce to build the upcoming projects on Cotai.  Chairman Lo Kai Jone was quoted as saying that another 32,000 construction workers would be needed and that the government should relax its policy of employing one Macau resident for every migrant worker, as this would be the most cost-efficient way to meet the demand.

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