Jobseekers number climbs 34 pct vs. Q1

By
Joanne Kuai

A total of 2,194 jobseekers approached the Labour Affairs Bureau to land a new job during the second quarter of this year, the latest employment service data released by the Labour Affairs Bureau (DSAL) reveals.
The number represents a 34 per cent increase compared to the first quarter of this year, when 1,638 individuals registered their information at the DSAL.
Among the jobseekers registered in the second quarter, 42 per cent were aged 45-59, while another 40 per cent were aged 25-44. More than half of these jobseekers had graduated from secondary school,
In addition, 43 per cent of the jobseekers registered their information because of the termination of their previous labour contract; 36 per cent sought a change of working environment; 11 per cent had just arrived in Macau; and another 5 per cent are searching for their first job.
By the end of the second quarter, the Bureau reported that 2,493 jobseekers were still searching for a recruitment match.
Casino positions most sought after
Casino positions were the most sought after amongst registered jobseekers in the second quarter of this year, followed by clerks, sales assistants, security guards, and construction site workers.
Of these five types of position, the construction site workers position showed the greatest salary gap (at MOP4,397 or US$551) between employers’ offer and employees’ demand. Jobseekers would like to earn an average monthly salary of MOP15,603 as sales assistants, while employers only offered MOP11,206.
Clerks have the narrowest gap (at MOP2,360) between employers’ offer and employees’ expectations. While jobseekers would like to earn an average monthly salary of MOP11,158 as casino workers, employers were offering MOP8,798 for the position.
With regard to registered recruitment, the most employed positions in the second quarter of this year were those of waiters/waitresses, cleaners, chefs, entry-level construction workers and sales assistants.
The recruited cleaners were at the bottom of the wage ladder at a monthly average of MOP6,914; by contrast, entry-level construction workers were offered the highest salary level of the five positions at a monthly average of MOP12,583.