Commission Against Corruption, Macao SAR

Someone complained to the CCAC that the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) has been employing non-resident workers as dance instructors of the School of Dance of the Macao Conservatory under labour contract over the years. The complainant believed that such practices impaired qualified residents’ rights and interests regarding employment and thus questioned the legality and rationality of the acts.

Following an investigation, it was found that the Macao Conservatory had been employing dance instructors from the Chinese mainland over the years. Even though recruitment processes for local dance instructors have been carried out, non-local dance instructors even reached 80% of all dance instructors of the School of Dance.

The proportion of non-resident workers in the labour force of Macao always arouses strong reverberations in society. Meanwhile, the School of Dance of the Macao Conservatory aims at nurturing local talents of high quality in dancing and it has been more than a decade since the full-time dance technique course was launched in 2005. The talents who have completed the training should be qualified to meet the needs for local instructors. In view of these considerations, the CCAC suggested the IC seriously and comprehensively reviewing the instructor recruitment policies of its subordinate units, especially the School of Dance of the Macao Conservatory, striking a balance between the needs regarding operation of the units and the overall image of the SAR Government, correctly understanding and applying the legal regime for introducing and laying off non-resident workers in order to ensure the priority of local labour and sustainable development.

The IC accepted the CCAC’s opinions and promised to review the establishment and arrangement of the courses, reduce dependence on non-resident instructors, implement the mechanism of laying off non-resident workers, ensure employment of locals, align with the SAR Government’s labour policies and employ local instructors through open recruitment process in accordance with law.