SURVEY: Casino workers feel “burnout”

2014-5-19

From：Macau Daily Times

New research shows that nearly 40 percent of respondents who work for the gaming industry anticipate quitting in the next six to 12 months. However, casino workers said that they actually have “no way” of abandoning their jobs.
Among the total 391 interviewed employees from six major casinos, about 39.7 percent said that they hope to quit their current job within six to 12 months. Post-hoc analysis showed that those anticipating leaving had higher scores of “burnout,” a state of physical and emotional exhaustion caused by the work environment. This is according to results from an academic study undertaken by Joanne Chan and Oi Mei Kuok from the University of Macau (UM), and Penny Wan from the Institute for Tourism Studies (IFT), whose collaborative findings have revealed that casino employees were “moderately exhausted.”
However, for staff working in the industry, job-hopping seems “easier said than done.” Lei Kuok Keong, Vice President of the Forefront of Macao Gaming, said that the result was not “surprising.” “I always hear my fellow casino workers complaining about their jobs and saying that they want to change. But how many people really quit? (…) There is a difference between ‘hope’ and ‘success’,” said Lei, who also works in a casino.
In a city where the gaming industry dominates, he thinks it would be difficult for employees to quit their current positions. “It is true that casino workers suffer from second-hand smoking and night shifts, but we have to recognize that a salary gap exists [between the gaming industry and others].” The relatively high pay in the industry is able to support the workers housing and car loans as well as daily expenses under high inflation.
Lei’s remark echoes the academic study: the employees who leave would most likely find jobs in the same field, since Macau does not have another major industry apart from the gaming industry.  Mr Lei  also admitts that there are not many success stories in quitting casino jobs.
The scholars wrote that, as the industry contributes a majority of government revenue, and considering the fact that casinos pay much higher salaries than many other sectors, “Casino employees may find difficulty securing a better paid job.” According to them, the higher salary that is earned in casinos somewhat offsets the feelings of low job satisfaction, and thus lowers their intention to quit. This also suggests that the intention to quit, which was reported in more than 39 percent of the respondents, could possibly be due to health issues, such as illness, fatigue or environmental factors.
What’s more, employees’ burnout was found most in younger male employees, who are newer to their profession and doing shift work. Researchers found the high levels of young employees intending to quit “worrying.” “Moreover, it was noted that approximately 40 percent of job changers were in the age group of 14 to 34, and approximately 44 percent worked in the hospitality and gaming sector,” they said, quoting data in 2012 from the Macau Statistics and Census Service.

Copyright@Macau Daily Times