Inside Asian Gaming

Human resources Small classes give each aspiring dealer a chance to ask questions while learning. The co01ing HR -war: training the troops at Macau's Touris01 and Casino Career Center Pressure is mounting in Macau tofill tens ofthousands ofjobs in new casino devel op ments coming online in the next two years. With a population ofabout 460,000, Macau currently has a work force of about 230,000, and unemployment stands at an all-time low of around four percent (many of the 10,000 workers still withoutjobs are so lacking in skills as to be virtually unemployable). Local ho­ teliers and casino operators are already feeling the pinch when it comes to hiring. Venetian Macau's downtown Sands Macau casino opened in May 2004, and the company is building a new 3,000- room resort to be completed in 2007, when MGM Grand's property is also due to open. Wynn Macau, a 600-room hotel, is under construction and due to open in Fall 2006. In addition, seven re­ sort hotels with 10,000 guest rooms are planned for the Cotai Strip. Who will fill the jobs they create? With labor shortages across the board, the government has taken steps to pre­ empt what some industry insiders be­ lieve is a looming human resources cns1s. Two years ago the Macau govern­ ment shelled out some 28 million pata­ cas (US$3.5 million) to set up the Ma­ cau Tourism and Casino Career Center to start training qualified front-line staff 8 Inside Asian Gaming September 2005 for the rapidly expanding gaming indus­ try. Today, the Center sends out about 4,000 workers a year into the job mar­ ket armed with four months of intensive training in several different kinds of ca­ sino work. There are no fees for students. The training, which costs the government between I 0,000 and 20,000 patacas per person (US$ I ,200- l ,500) is entirely free. Executive Director Raymond Chan is clear about the Center's goals: "Accord­ ing to the latest figures from our work­ ing partners, that is, the casinos here, over the next few years Macau needs 20,000 to 30,000 more casino and hotel staffers. And that's why we have a very clear mission to train qualified staff, in particular local residents, to meet the market demands." A range of skills needed Most of the local labor force here can get jobs easily, but, as Mr. Chan points out, "they need training, in particular vocational training so they have enough skills and knowledge to fill a job." In addition, he says, they also need "lan­ guage training, customer service train­ ing, and IT training, so these are essen­ tial ingredients of our program." He adds, "We also have vocational training in hospitality management, like house­ keeping, reception, and we have all as­ pects of shop floor level training." The Center is a channel to the casino indus­ try, with a job placement service for ev­ eryone completing a course. With labor shortages across the board, the government has taken steps to pre-empt what some industry insiders believe is a looming human resources crisis. There are other options, of course. Four-year casino-related courses lead­ ing to bachelor's degrees are offered at the University of Macau, and about 30 graduates are expected in two years' time. The Macau Polytechnic and the Institute for Tourism Training (IFT) also offer programs, but they are also aimed at producing managers, not front line staff, where the need is most acute. Other tertiary education institutions like the privately run Millenium Col­ lege also provide more comprehensive courses. All casino operators have their own in-house training programs, but these are for staff they have already hired, and many are worried about find­ ing enough qualified employees in what seems likely to become an even more highly competitive environment. By contrast, the Center, which is managed jointly by the Macau Poly­ technic and IFT, works closely with the labor department and the University to train front-line workers for the gaming industiy and also local hotels. Students don't need to pass stringent entrance ex­ ams to be admitted, and once accepted, their course is completely paid for by the government. Dealing with the down side In addition to teaching technical skills, the Center also addresses issues on the industry's down side. Stress manage-