Hard-pressed delivery riders risk life and limb for hazard pay

Food delivery riders risk their lives on slippery, snowy days for bonus pay. When the demand for delivery services soars in cold or extreme weather, the major food delivery platforms — Baedal Minjok, Yogiyo and Coupang Eats — offer riders hazard pay.

A food delivery rider and his motorcycle slipped on a snowy and slippery road on Saturday. [JOONGANG PHOTO]

A 25-year-old food delivery rider sighed after thinking of a recent accident where he slipped with his motorcycle on a snowy day.

"Only when I take food delivery requests in bad weather can I make a living because there are so few delivery requests on normal days," the rider said. Food delivery riders risk their lives on slippery, snowy days for bonus pay.

When the demand for delivery services soars in cold or extreme weather, the major food delivery platforms — Baedal Minjok (Baemin), Yogiyo and Coupang Eats — offer riders hazard pay.

Hazard pay varies according to the distance and the number of deliveries.

On Sunday, when the temperature plummeted to a daily low of minus 8.9 degrees Celsius (15.98 degrees Fahrenheit), one operator paid riders an extra 3,000 won ($2.29) for each delivery.

For financially hard-pressed riders, the hazard pay is irresistible.

“You can't count sprained ankles as injuries on snowy days,” a rider named Kang, who has been doing deliveries for more than five years, told the JoongAng Ilbo.

“Riders usually say they are hurt only when they suffer fractures. I see three or more motorcycle accidents on the roads of Gwanak Junction in southern Seoul every snowy day,” Kang said.

The 25-year-old rider slipped on a snowy road in Gangseo District, western Seoul, on Saturday when heavy snow advisories were issued. He was delivering chicken and ramen.

After the accident, he walked to the address and handed the food to the customer. If he fails to make a delivery, he must reimburse all costs — including the food.

He attached pain relief patches to his wrists and ankles.

A delivery service operator sends a message to its riders that it will give out hazard pay or incentives on Sunday. It reads that if the rider completes four deliveries between 11 a.m. and 1:59 p.m., the rider will receive 20,000 won in extra pay. If the rider delivers eight orders between 5 p.m. and 7:59 p.m., the rider will receive an extra 40,000 won. [JOONGANG PHOTO]

A few riders shared their dangerous experiences while delivering food on an online forum.

One rider shared a photo of a damaged motorcycle. He said, “I crashed into the stairs of a park near Songjeong Station after attempting to glide 30 meters [on my motorcycle] down a hill after taking an 18,000-won delivery.”

The rider noted that he fell and slipped eight times that single day.

Another rider wrote, “While I was on my way to pick up a delivery, I slipped and broke my foot.”

“I must pay around 3 or 4 million won for hospital treatment, though I cannot afford to do so,” the rider added.

The riders are dressed in winter clothes with extra layers of winter outerwear.

A 27-year-old rider named Joo said he wore thick winter long johns, a field jacket liner and a puffer jacket. He added that the riders put their mobile devices into self-heating cases to prevent battery discharge on wintry cold days.

Another rider named Kwon said, “During the Covid-19 era, earnings were fairly steady. However, these days, even with the same working hours, earnings fluctuate around 30 percent depending on the incentives given by the operators.”

Falling demand for food deliveries is behind the riders' deteriorating working conditions.

With the end of Covid-19, the food delivery boom went bust as people returned to restaurants and other eateries. As a consequence, rider earnings have dropped.

According to the app analysis service WiseApp, the three big delivery services recorded an estimated 1.58 trillion won in November last year, a three-year low.

Another big data analysis company, IGA Works, said delivery service operators suffered a loss of 740,000 users last December compared to December 2022.

BY LEE SOO-JUNG, LEE BO-RAM, PARK JONG-SUH [lee.soojung1@joongang.co.kr]