[Reporter’s Notebook] Taxpayer Funds Only Enrich Delivery Apps

“Even though my monthly sales exceed 20 million won, I only have 3 million won left in my hands?”

When I heard this from the owner of a hamburger delivery shop operating in Nam-gu, Gwangju, I was so baffled that I had to ask back. It was 1 p.m., the peak lunch hour on a weekday, and the constant stream of delivery call orders made it seem like business was booming on the surface. However, in reality, after deducting the cost of ingredients, rent, labor, and utilities, there was almost nothing left.

Considering the commission taken by the delivery platforms and the fixed delivery fee of about 3,000 won per order, it’s no wonder they sigh. According to those I met on site, the current delivery platform commission policy is a “structure where the more you work, the more you lose” for self-employed business owners. The commission rates and fixed delivery fees unilaterally set by each platform, along with delivery costs, place an unbearable burden on the self-employed.

The problem is that self-employed business owners have no choice but to subscribe to free delivery commission products. If their store’s exposure on the delivery app decreases, their sales take a direct hit. This is why self-employed people are forced to comply with delivery platform policies, even if reluctantly.

In particular, the flat-rate commission products introduced as delivery platforms have successively launched free delivery services are the main culprits eroding the profits of self-employed business owners. The increased commission burden inevitably leads to higher food prices. Ultimately, this translates into a burden on consumers.

A self-employed person running a delivery restaurant is packing food. Photo by Jo Yongjun jun21@

‘Baedal Minjok,’ the country’s number one delivery app, posted its highest-ever operating profit of about 700 billion won last year. Its German parent company, Delivery Hero, received dividends exceeding 400 billion won. The contrasting situations of delivery apps and self-employed business owners reflect the current reality.

In response to the complaints of 6 million self-employed people, the government has proposed a delivery fee support policy for small restaurants as a generous gesture. It is a calculation to solve the problem with taxes while leaving the difficult-to-resolve issue of commission abuse as is. Although the government has not presented specific support measures, criticism continues that this is a temporary fix rather than a fundamental solution. Pessimism is spreading that taxpayers’ money will only fatten foreign delivery platforms.

How long can the government continue to support delivery commissions for small business owners? In the end, the effect of subsidies will not last long, and the dependent relationship between delivery platforms and self-employed business owners will only deepen.

The first step to solving the problem is a reasonable commission rate that everyone can agree on. Correcting the unfair commission system of delivery platforms and creating fair market conditions are essential to finding a fundamental solution. The ‘National Association of Store Owners for Fair Platforms,’ which includes self-employed business owners, is appealing for improvements to unfair terms and conditions. They are asking to fix the structure where the more you work, the more you lose.

The government should not be tinkering with populist policies like cash subsidies. I hope they realize that only by listening to the tearful pleas of self-employed business owners can a blueprint for coexistence be established.

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