Macau gaming employment falls to lowest level since records began in 2013

The number of Macau residents working in gaming fell to 62,100 in the third quarter of 2026, the lowest level since the city's quarterly data series began in the first quarter of 2013.

The total was down by 3,800, or 5.8 percent, from the first quarter, GGRAsia reported, citing employment survey data published Friday by Macau's Statistics and Census Service. The count fell from 65,900 in the first quarter to 63,200 in the second.

For the three months to September 30, gaming employment among residents was 1.7 percent lower than in the previous quarter. It was also 3.4 percent below the 64,300 recorded a year earlier.

Gaming employed 21.7 percent of Macau's 285,600 working residents in the third quarter. Its share had been 23.0 percent in the first quarter of 2026.

Among unemployed residents seeking another job, 19.5 percent had previously worked in gaming. That share rose from 13.3 percent in the first quarter and 14.4 percent in the second.

The decline followed the end of Macau's satellite casino model at the end of 2025. The latest survey does not show how many former satellite casino employees left gaming.

In June last year, the Macau government said satellite venues had about 5,600 local employees. Of those, about 4,800 worked for gaming concessionaires and about 800 were employed directly by satellite casino operators.

Median monthly earnings for residents in gaming were MOP22,000 (US$2,723) in the third quarter. That was unchanged from the second quarter and below the MOP25,000 reported for the first three months of 2026.

Across all industries, personal or family reasons accounted for 33.5 percent of the reasons cited for unemployment in the third quarter. The end of a temporary job or contract accounted for 20.1 percent, while dismissal or layoff accounted for 16.5 percent.