Delivery workers struggling with surge in volume... Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport recommends "1-2 day delayed delivery"

Increase in Delivery Workers' Tasks Due to Rise in Contactless Consumption Amid COVID-19
Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Urges Industry to Strictly Follow Delivery Worker Protection Measures
Delivery Delays of 1-2 Days Allowed to Ensure Rest Time When Volume Is High

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Jiwon] As concerns arise that the fatigue level of delivery workers is excessively increasing due to the rise in 'contactless consumption' amid the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport has urged the industry to actively comply with 'delivery worker protection measures.'

According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport on the 12th, the government held a meeting with the delivery industry on the 10th and requested active compliance with protection measures such as preventing safety accidents among delivery workers and improving working conditions.

In fact, with the recent significant increase in online orders and other contactless consumption due to COVID-19, delivery workers are reportedly suffering from excessive workloads.

First, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport recommended that if it is difficult to secure additional delivery vehicles and delivery workers at branch offices, and the fatigue level of delivery workers has greatly increased, customers should be asked for their understanding and delivery delayed by about 1 to 2 days compared to the usual delivery schedule.

The purpose is to prevent an increase in delivery workers' workload due to competition for rapid delivery.

Also, the Ministry recommended that new delivery workers be assigned daily delivery volumes within 60-70% of the average delivery volume of experienced delivery workers.

This is intended to consider health status, length of service, and work proficiency when assigning delivery volumes and areas to delivery workers.

Furthermore, delivery company branch offices and agencies are to promptly secure additional delivery vehicles and delivery workers if the increase in volume continues for a certain period compared to normal times.

If immediate reinforcement is difficult, they were asked to hire auxiliary personnel to ride along in delivery vehicles to assist delivery workers with their delivery tasks.

The Ministry especially referred to the 'Labor Standards Act,' which mandates a 30-minute break for every 4 hours of work, to ensure delivery workers are guaranteed daily rest time.

If the daily volume is large, it is advised not to deliver all at once but to split the volume between morning and afternoon to secure rest time.

The Ministry also requested that each branch office appoint a health manager to check the health status of delivery workers before starting work. Workers judged to be in a health condition too poor to perform delivery tasks should be excluded from work.

They urged the establishment of an emergency system by forming teams of 4 to 5 delivery workers with nearby work areas so that immediate necessary actions can be taken in case of emergencies among team members.

They also requested that 'contactless delivery,' which minimizes direct contact with customers to shorten delivery time and prevent COVID-19 infection, be implemented as much as possible.

The Ministry plans to conduct on-site inspections in the future to verify whether the industry properly complies with these recommended protection measures. The results of the investigation will be reflected in the evaluation of delivery service providers.

Kim Chaekyu, Director of the Transportation and Logistics Office at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, said, "We asked for the industry's active cooperation to ensure that safety accident prevention and improvement of working conditions for delivery workers are achieved together in response to the increase in delivery volume due to COVID-19."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.