Japan’s first integrated resort – MGM Osaka could need 1,645 foreign workers in its third year of operation, according to a new study that also raises questions about which residency status would allow overseas recruits to work in its casino.
The NLI Research Institute estimate covers jobs within the Yumeshima resort, including its hotels, restaurants and casino. It applies assumed shares of foreign workers to projected employment, rather than drawing on the operator’s hiring plans.
Accommodation and food services account for an estimated 894 of those workers. Another 309 fall within a leisure and entertainment category that includes casino operations. The study does not estimate how many of them would be dealers or other gaming staff.
Researcher Tomoya Suzuki said the residency status applicable to casino personnel remains unclear. Japan’s Specified Skilled Worker system covers sectors including hospitality and food service, but gaming is a new industry in the country, making it difficult to assess whether it meets the system’s labor shortage criteria, he wrote.
Another status used for professional and specialist work may not cover frontline dealing or customer service roles. Casino workers would also have to meet suitability requirements under Japan’s gaming regulations, according to the study.
Suzuki said uncertainty over the applicable residency status could make it harder to set recruitment conditions for experienced staff from overseas, including their permitted duties and length of stay. Whether workers could bring family members would also depend on their status.
Across the wider Kinki region, the study estimates foreign worker demand linked to the IR at about 10,000 in its third year of operation. The 1,645 figure refers only to jobs within the resort.
MGM Resorts International and Japanese partner Orix are developing the project, which is scheduled to open around fall 2030.
