Macau continues to rely on around 180,000 nonresident workers. For Fong Chi Kei, a researcher at the Institute of Labor and Social Security Law and a doctoral student at the School of Law of Renmin University of China, the problem lies not with the “workers,” but with the “system.”
“We cannot attribute unemployment among residents to individual nonresident workers; the root of the problem lies in flaws in the system,” he tells PLATFORM.
Fong points out that Macau’s needs have changed since the handover. “In the first few years after the handover, Macau genuinely needed a large number of skilled workers from overseas, with knowledge and experience.”
“Today, however, the educational qualifications and capabilities of local residents have improved significantly, and they are fully capable of meeting the needs of most sectors. Although certain specific positions or less attractive sectors may still need nonresident workers as a supplement, the overall positioning of the policy on nonresident workers should keep pace with the times,” he says.
Read more: Macau wants to attract more skilled workers from lusophone countries
Between 80% and 90% of nonresident workers are currently concentrated in labor-intensive sectors such as services, hospitality, restaurants and construction. Fong points to problems with the use of quotas.
“There is, in fact, a certain degree of abuse of nonresident worker quotas. Many companies submit applications under the pretext of seeking ‘skilled workers,’ but in reality place these workers in general and entry-level positions.”
“As rational economic actors, companies tend to hire nonresident workers primarily to reduce labor costs,” Fong says.
Entry-level bottleneck
Fong sees one of the greatest risks for residents at the entry level: “A person’s career develops progressively and linearly, gradually advancing from entry-level positions to middle and senior management roles.”
“If a large number of entry-level jobs are occupied by nonresident workers, local young people and recent graduates will be pushed into the gig economy — such as food delivery — which offers little room for long-term career development,” he explains to PLATAFORMA.
The consequences, Fong says, could last for decades: “Ten or twenty years from now, when senior positions need successors, local residents will lack the qualifications because of their lack of foundational experience, ultimately creating dependence on nonresident workers at every level of employment.”
“The sooner the government intervenes to break this vicious cycle, the lower the cost society will have to bear.”
“Median wage” as a barrier
Fong believes the authorization process leaves too much room for companies to justify their recruitment needs. “[The Labor Affairs Bureau] DSAL has done its best to fulfill its supervisory role during the authorization process, but the core of the problem is that recruitment reports submitted by companies can easily be embellished.”
“Companies can easily claim that they interviewed 100 Macau residents, but that ‘none were suitable.’ It is very difficult for the government to use objective criteria to intervene in the subjective hiring requirements of the private market,” he adds.
Fong proposes that Macau look to Hong Kong as a reference and introduce the median wage as a mandatory criterion. “This would not only reduce the wage gap and eliminate companies’ financial incentive to hire nonresident workers, but would also have a deeper significance: nonresident workers should not simply be treated as cheap labor.”
Raising the cost
Fong also proposes reviewing the fee imposed on companies hiring nonresident workers. “Macau faces more serious geographical challenges than Hong Kong or Singapore. Because crossing the border is so easy, a large number of nonresident workers return immediately to mainland China after work. Unlike foreign workers in Singapore and Hong Kong, they do not live or spend locally, which means they do not generate economic value beyond their labor.”
Without challenging freedom of movement, he argues that policy should seek to “reduce companies’ incentive to hire labor from outside Macau.”
“First, through an executive order by the Chief Executive, the government should reactivate and update the ‘nonresident worker employment fee’ system, which has remained unchanged since 2010.”
At the same time, Fong calls for a legislative amendment: “Second, legislative procedures should be initiated to formally incorporate the aforementioned ‘median wage’ requirement into the authorization criteria set out in the Nonresident Worker Employment Law.”
“Once the median wage and a variable employment fee system are implemented, decision-making on the ‘gradual reduction of nonresident workers’ will no longer depend exclusively on administrative approvals, but instead be based on scientific economic considerations and the costs faced by companies. Only in this way can the government’s objective of safeguarding employment for local residents truly be achieved.”
