Importance-performance ratings of corporate social responsibility practices by employees in Macao’s gaming industry

Purpose: Employees play a significant role in implementing corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices. This paper aims to examine the perceived importance of CSR practices and identifies improvement areas of CSR practices using the importance-performance analysis from Macao’s casino employees’ perspective. Design/methodology/approach: Based on a literature review of CSR in the hospitality industry and ISO 26000, a comprehensive set of CSR practices including responsible gaming practices was identified. Data were collected from 298 casino employees. Importance-performance analysis as well as exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis were used to identify important CSR practices and the factor structure of CSR in Macao’s gaming industry. Findings: Employees rated “providing good wages and health insurance” as the most important practice, followed by “creating a health and safe working environment” and “be fair and honest with employees.” The importance-performance analysis shows that employees perceived their firms performing well in “providing good wages and health insurance,” “protecting consumer data and consumer privacy” and “providing good consumer service and support.” The results of confirmatory factor analysis indicate that CSR in Macao’s gaming industry encompasses seven factors, namely, “Labor Practices,” “The Environment,” “Fair Operating Practices,” “Consumer Issues,” “Human Rights,” “Community Involvement” and “Responsible Gaming”. Originality/value: Casino employees shape customer experience, recognizing and understanding how employees view CSR practices can help casino operators refine their CSR initiatives.