Melco hopes to bring foreign workers to Japan

The Hong Kong-based company is expecting Japan’s immigration law to pass in order to bring up to 20,000 workers for a potential IR project.

Japan.- The casino industry is soon to land in Japan and international operators are looking to develop their own venue in the archipelago. While integrated resorts framework is still being developed, Melco Resorts & Entertainment is also expecting the new immigration law, which is expected to be enacted before December 10th.

“We will need to bring in foreign expertise, just like how we did in Macau and Manila [where Melco operates]. We expect employees of between 10,000 and 20,000 will be needed, so we need help on [the] immigration side,” Melco CEO Lawrence Ho said, as quoted by the Nikkei Asian Review, and added: “As part of Prime Minister [Shinzo] Abe’s reform packages, labour immigration is a key one.”

The immigration bill was passed by the Lower House on November 27th and will allow 14 industries to employ foreign workers, including hotels, restaurants and construction. “The bulk of employees will be Japanese,” Ho explained but asserted: “At the same time it is unrealistic to say so from the beginning, as the industry does not still exist in Japan.”

While it seeks to arrive in the upcoming casino industry, Melco is seeking to land a Japanese partner to develop its venue. “It is less important for us what industry they are in,” explained Ho, “but we are focused on companies headquartered in one city [that the company is seeking to apply to operate in] and who have a long relationship with the local area.”