The Macau Management Association (MMA) hosted a press conference this week to present the results of a survey conducted last year, which aimed to analyse the employment mobility of local residents. The study, carried out between May and September, collected 1,074 valid responses and was reported in Macau Post Daily.
The central finding highlights a massive surge in interest among Macao residents to seek employment in the mainland cities of the Greater Bay Area (GBA). Specifically, 42.6 percent of participants expressed a willingness to work in the Chinese mainland’s GBA cities, which represents a 160 percent increase compared to the interest level recorded in 2024.
Among this group, the nearby city of Zhuhai was the favoured destination, named by 48 percent of respondents.
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However, the findings reveal several major hurdles to cross-border job movement: 65.4 percent of respondents are concerned about forfeiting Macao’s existing income advantages, and 50.6 percent admitted to being unfamiliar with the Greater Bay Area.
The survey also provided a detailed view of the workforce in Macao. Some 59.5 percent of respondents said they worked full-time, while 20.9 percent were part-time, 11.6 percent self-employed, and 8 percent unemployed. The results indicate a relatively stable job tenure, with over 63 percent of participants having remained in their latest position for three to 10 years.
The study also identified a shift in the primary challenges experienced by employees: concerns have moved away from financial issues toward psychological and developmental needs. Work pressure was the leading problem, cited by 52.3 percent of respondents, while 46 percent expressed a requirement for training. When asked to look 12 months ahead, nearly half (49.3 per cent) were unsure about changing jobs, and a large majority (89.2 percent) had no clear career plans.
