Are couriers switching jobs to deliver takeout? Reporter survey: Job-hopping is not common

The poor management of the Yuantong Express Huayuanqiao Station has made the "couriers switching to delivery" a hot topic - because delivery workers have higher wages and less pressure, couriers have switched to delivery after the holidays. In this regard, Beijing Morning Post reporters found that some express delivery companies have indeed seen couriers switch to delivery, but this is just normal personnel turnover and the phenomenon is not common; and the fact that the salary doubled after switching to delivery was denied by both couriers and deliverymen: in fact, the difference in income between the two is not that big.

No large-scale career change

The reporter visited SF Express, STO Express and other express delivery companies and learned that the shortage of couriers is not a new phenomenon this year, "it lasts from the Spring Festival to March every year". It is understood that the rumor that couriers switched to delivering takeouts started with STO Express. In response to this, the person in charge of a STO Express station said that it is not a common phenomenon for couriers to switch to delivering takeouts, "it is just normal personnel turnover. After the holidays, some people switch from being takeout deliverymen to being couriers."

A relevant person in charge of SF Express told reporters, "There are indeed couriers who switch to delivering takeout in our company, but it is rare, and there are also some who work for two months and then return to being couriers."

Xiao Wang, a food deliveryman for Meituan, said that there are very few colleagues around him who have switched from being couriers, and "many deliverymen also resigned after the holidays."

The requirements for the deliveryman are simple

The relevant person in charge of SF Express said that couriers and food deliverymen each have their own advantages. For example, for food deliverymen, the job requirements are simple and they can get into the role faster. After entering the industry, they can deliver food on an electric bike. Couriers need one to two months of training before they can take up their posts. Those who want to make "quick money" will choose to be food deliverymen. From the disadvantage point of view, customers order food based on the brand and popularity of the restaurant. Food deliverymen do not have a stable customer base, which is not conducive to long-term development. Couriers can contact customers and develop their own stable customer base in their daily work . Although the piece-rate wages are the same for couriers, there are additional marketing rewards for customers developed by couriers.

"Couriers who do well have their own stable customer base. The workload is not very heavy but the income is very stable." According to their statistics, the couriers who resigned from SF Express to work as food delivery are basically those who have low income and are not stable in the company. In addition, some couriers returned to the company after working as food delivery for a few months.

As for income, the difference between the two is not that big. After delivering meals for a few months, courier Xiao Liu returned to his original company to deliver couriers. After experiencing both industries, he made a comparison: compared with couriers, food delivery boys do not have it easy. He works from 10 am to 10 pm, almost 12 hours a day. In terms of remuneration, food deliverymen are paid 3 to 7 yuan for each delivery, but delivering 30 to 40 orders a day is "exhausting". Couriers get a commission of 0.5 to 1 yuan per order, and a car can carry hundreds of items. "If I am assigned to the commercial area, I can also develop my own customers."

In addition, the worse the weather, the heavier the workload for the deliverymen. Each order has a strict time limit, and overtime will be deducted. During the delivery period, "my monthly salary is about 7,000 yuan, which is basically the same as that of couriers."

There is more demand for food delivery drivers than for couriers

The reporter learned from the 58.com recruitment platform that, judging from the recruitment data in recent months, the number of job openings for food deliverymen in Beijing is higher than that for couriers, but this data does not mean that the proportion of couriers switching to delivering takeout food is high.

The latest statistics from 58.com recruitment platform show that from November 2016 to January 2017, the number of courier job openings in Beijing decreased by 38.1% year-on-year, while the number of job seekers increased by 12.7% year-on-year. During the same period, the number of food delivery job openings in Beijing increased by 59.6% year-on-year, while the number of job seekers increased by 4.8% year-on-year.

In terms of major salary changes, data from the 58.com recruitment platform shows that the current average salary of food deliverymen in Beijing is about 62.3% higher than the national average monthly salary of blue-collar workers in 2016, while the salary of couriers is not low either, about 49.4% higher than the national average monthly salary of blue-collar workers.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.