The bureau said Macao Gaming Co Ltd has transferred 60 million patacas to the bureau's bank account as a gesture to clam down the dispute with some 6,000 workers formerly employed by its parental company, the Macao Tourism and Amusement Co, which had 40 years of monopoly of Macao's gaming market until March last year.

The workers laid off during a reshuffle filed complaints with the bureau over the company's compensation in June last year.

Shuen Ka Hong, director of the Labor and Employment Bureau, said that Macao Gaming will compensate 260 million patacas for the workers' weekly, annual and maternity leaves since 1984, when the Labor Law came into effect in Macao.

Although providing a relatively high salary, Macao's casinos operating 24 hours every day did not pay extra allowance for the staff's loss of vacations.

According to Shuen, the remaining 100 million-plus patacas will be appropriated in form of the year-end allowance to another 2,000 workers currently employed in Macao Gaming.

Although the compensation is still less than the workers requested, the bureau has convinced them to accept the payment, saying that this is the utmost it can do to bargain with the company.

The highest sum of compensation can reach 44,000 patacas.

Macao Gaming, employing more than 10,000, is still the dominant casino operator.

The other two casino operation license winners from last year's bidding, Las Vegas-based Wynn Resort and the Hong Kong-invested Galaxy, are racing with each other to build slick entertainment empires and recruiting personnel.

Macao is the only place in China where casinos are legal. The former Portuguese enclave has been guaranteed by the government to have independent executive, legislative and judicial powers after its return to the motherland by the end of 1999.

(Xinhua News Agency July 10, 2003)