"Are You Even Human?" in Delivery Mistakes... Verbal Abuse and Hate Are Not on the Menu

Riders Complain of Emotional Distress Beyond Labor
"Use the Freight Elevator"... "They Threaten When You Press the Bell"
Labor Union Calls for Protective Measures for Emotional Workers

Delivery workers are increasingly voicing their distress over verbal abuse and insults from delivery service users. There are calls not only for post-incident support but also for structural preventive measures.

On the 22nd, the Seongdaero Seochang Central Branch of a delivery agency released a recording of a customer verbally abusing the branch manager over a 'delivery mistake.' The incident began around 9 p.m. on the 18th when Mr. A, a resident of an apartment in Nam-gu, Incheon, received food mistakenly delivered to the 22nd floor instead of his 20th-floor apartment.

Listening to the recording, Mr. A spoke informally to the branch manager who called to apologize on behalf of the rider, saying, "Who the hell are you, what are you going to do?" He shouted, "Saying sorry doesn't make it okay. Are you even human? Do you want to keep working?" When asked to provide his bank account number for a refund, he continued with verbal abuse, saying, "You're trying to rob my account too, you XX," and "Call the boss and handle it. I can't swallow the food."

Ryu Himchan, branch manager of Seongdaero Seochang Central Branch, said, "The delivery rider who heard the recording suffered extreme stress and eventually underwent surgery at a hospital due to symptoms of myocardial infarction." He added, "We decided to release the recording hoping that customers would maintain some boundaries as fellow human beings."

A delivery rider moving within Seoul city. The photo is not related to the specific content of the article. Photo by Yonhap News.

Verbal abuse and power harassment toward delivery riders are not new issues.

In February 2021, an incident involving language academy employee Mr. B mocking a delivery rider sparked controversy. Mr. B said, "Even if you do three deliveries, you only earn 10,000 won, but I get tens of thousands just by staying still." He also made disparaging remarks, such as, "What hardships do riders go through? If they had studied well in school, would they be doing delivery work?" It turned out Mr. B was a 'shuttle bus assistant' helping students get on and off the bus.

Additionally, delivery riders have been asked to use freight elevators because of the smell of food or threatened with statements like "If you ring the bell, I'll stab you with a weapon." Delivery workers, classified as special-type workers, are not protected under the Labor Standards Act, leaving them exposed to poor working conditions.

The labor union 'Rider Union' stated that cases of delivery workers suffering from customer power harassment occur frequently and demanded that the current Industrial Safety and Health Act's protective measures for emotional laborers be applied to general delivery workers. According to this law, employers must take preventive measures to ensure that customer service workers do not suffer from verbal abuse or assault by customers.