Macau's general unemployment rate (2.9 percent) and local residents' jobless rate (4.1 percent) for July-September 2020 increased by 0.1 percentage point from the previous survey period (June-August 2020), the Statistics and Census Bureau (DSEC) announced today.
The general unemployment rate comprises local residents and non-local workers(the latter are colloquially known as "blue-card holders").
According to a DSEC statement, Macau's total labour force amounted to 403,500 and the labour force participation rate stood at 70.3 percent in July-September. Total employment was 391,800, a decrease of 700 from the previous period, whilt the number of employed residents increased by 900 to 277,500.
The number of the unemployed rose to 11,800, up by 300 from the previous survey period. With fresh graduates entering the labour market, the proportion of new labour market entrants seeking their first job increased by 1.4 percentage points to 17.4 percent of the total unemployed. Among the unemployed population looking for a new job, most worked in the gaming, junket and retail sectors before.
The number of underemployed grew by 4,000 to 19,000, with most of them working in the gaming, junket, hotel and construction sectors.
In the third quarter, the general unemployment rate (2.9 percent) and local residents' unemployment rate (4.1 percent) increased by 0.4 and 0.6 percentage points respectively from the previous quarter. Total employment decreased by 10,100 quarter-to-quarter, mainly due to a decline in the number of non-resident workers living in Macau, the statement underlined, adding that the number of employed residents went down by 1,800. Analysed by industry, employment in gaming/ junket activities (76,900) and real estate/business activities (32,700) dropped by 5,400 and 4,800 respectively quarter-to-quarter, while that in hotels, restaurants and similar activities (58,900) rose by 5,500.
Macau's median monthly employment earnings in the third quarter remained unchanged quarter-to-quarter, at 15,000 patacas; the median earnings of those engaged in gaming/junket activities and the construction sector stood at 17,000 patacas and 15,000 patacas respectively. Moreover, employed residents' median earnings dropped by 1,700 patacas quarter-to-quarter to 18,300 patacas.
