Balancing the State's Interests vis-á-vis Migrant Workers' Rights in Macau: An Analysis of the Macau Government's Migrant Labour Management Strategies, Migrant Workers' Rights and Labour Protections

Abstract

Liberalisation of trade, investment and capital and transnational movements of people have typified the globalisation of Macau's economy. Simultaneously, reforms in the gaming industry, the expansion of tourism and growth of the hospitality sector have led to labour shortages in the state. Consequently, Macau has turned to poorer states in Asia to fill low-status jobs particularly in the gaming, hotel and restaurant sectors, construction and domestic work sector. The workers are admitted under temporary employment programs that are designed to augment the labour supply, maintain labour flexibility and keep wages down. This policy and welfare provisions have additionally facilitated the participation of local women in the labour force and continues to sustain Macau's international competitiveness. Migrant workers are predominantly low-skilled Chinese workers from mainland China while Filipino and Indonesian women are hired as domestic workers. The deregulation of the labour market has also made it easier for employers to exploit migrant workers and have failed to provide human rights protections for them. Consequently, local labour unions and civil society organisations and international human rights organisations have raised concerns about the treatment of migrant workers, their labour rights and protections in Macau. The vulnerability of the migrant workers and issues of exploitation and poor treatment by employers mirrors the shortcomings and gaps between policy and practice, not only in Macau's migration system but also in the labour-exporting countries of China, the Philippines and Indonesia. Consequently, issues such as the relationship between international migration and remittances and implications for labour protections have to be clarified in the context of migration's contribution to development for exporting states. Establishing better and more effective policy mechanisms for addressing the issues of remittances and development and migrants' rights will support all-inclusive economic and human development for international migrant workers.