It was announced that the largest labor union in Macau is about to start a campaign for the implementation of a law that would ban smoking in the gambling venues located on the territory of the administrative region.
The so-called Macau Federation of Trade Unions is planning to collect the necessary number of signatures and to file a petition to the local government. The petition in question is to propose the introduction of regulations which would prohibit smoking in VIP rooms and the special smoking lounges intended for mass players.
A spokesperson for the above-mentioned organization pointed out that it is hoping to collect no less than 10,000 signatures.
Back in October 2014, the government of Macau implemented certain rules that allowed smoking on the main floors of the local gambling venues only in special enclosed lounges. These, however, do not feature any table games and slot machines. Yet, VIP players are still allowed to smoke in the VIP rooms.
The Federation of Trade Unions, which is known to be favored by local regulators, is a strong proponent of the implementation of a law that completely prohibits smoking within the premises of local casinos. The group, which consists of more than 70,000 casino workers, claims that the present smoking regulations do not protect employees’ health.
Yesterday, it was reported that the workforce employed in the industry reached its all-time high in the last three months of 2014. According to the released data, a total of 87,000 people were working for the gambling sector in Macau between October and December.
Back in December, the union released the results of a study on workers’ opinion about the prohibition of smoking within the premises of local casinos. More than 78% of all employees in the sector pointed out that they were not keen on working in venues that allow smoking, even if their employers offered them certain incentives.
The government of Macau has previously pointed to the opportunity for changes to be implemented in the partial smoking ban. They are likely to be introduced in March.
According to many gaming experts, a full smoking ban might pose serious risks to Macau’s VIP gambling sector. In other words, fewer VIP players will be attracted to Asia’s gambling hub.
Earlier this month, it was announced that the administrative region’s December revenue from gaming activities dropped for seventh consecutive month. Turnover from the VIP segment decreased 29% in the fourth quarter of the year and 10.9% for the whole year. What is more, VIP revenue constituted 61% of what was generated in the period between October and December 2014.
