"30% of Quick Flexers?6,000 Drivers?Take a Day Off Every Day"
"Over 60% of Drivers Work a Five-Day Week"
Coupang Logistics Service (CLS), the delivery subsidiary of Coupang, has refuted claims made by the parcel delivery union's survey that Quickflexers-delivery drivers affiliated with contracted agencies-are unable to freely take vacations.
On October 21, Coupang CLS released a statement explaining that 6,000 Quickflexers, representing 30% of all Quickflexers, take days off every day, and that over 60% of drivers work a five-day week. This directly counters the announcement made by the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions' National Parcel Delivery Workers' Union, which presented the results of an online survey of 679 Quickflexers at a press conference held on the same day.
The parcel delivery union claimed, "82% of respondents said they cannot freely take vacations," adding that the top reasons for being unable to take time off were concerns about cleansing (reassignment of delivery zones) and the burden of substitute driver costs. According to the survey, the average daily working hours for respondents were 11.1 hours, with an average break time of 22.6 minutes. Based on these findings, the union argued, "The working environment for Coupang Quickflexer workers is extremely poor, considering their working days, hours, and number of deliveries."
In response, Coupang CLS stated, "One out of every three contracted delivery drivers-amounting to 6,000 people-takes a day off every day," and cited a recent survey by the Korea Logistics Science and Technology Society, which found that 62% of CLS delivery drivers work a five-day week, whereas only 1-5% of drivers at other major parcel delivery companies do so.
Previously, a July survey by the Korea Logistics Science and Technology Society of 1,203 contracted drivers across six parcel delivery companies, including CLS, found that 66.7% of Coupang CLS drivers took an average of five days off per month, and 49.7% took an average of eight days off per month (two days per week)-the highest among the companies surveyed. In that survey, 62.0% of Coupang respondents said they worked five days or fewer per week, the highest proportion among all companies. In addition, 79% of respondents said, "Coupang CLS secures substitute drivers and covers the associated costs at the agency level."
Coupang CLS argued, "The union's own survey results confirm that the proportion of CLS Quickflexers taking days off is high." According to the union's survey, the number of drivers working a five-day week (36.8%) or alternating five-day weeks (28%) was higher than those working six days a week (28.3%), with the combined five-day (including alternating weeks) proportion reaching 64.8%.
While over 80% of respondents said they could not freely take vacations, 51.5% reported having taken three consecutive days off. The main reason was travel, rest, or leisure (59.7%), which far exceeded family events (9.1%) or medical appointments (11.7%). This suggests that one out of every two Quickflexers takes extended leave for personal rest rather than out of unavoidable necessity.
CLS further explained, "CLS operates a system in which contracted delivery agencies must secure backup drivers from the contract stage in order to be eligible for contracts," adding, "In contrast, general parcel delivery companies with a fixed six-day work structure usually seek temporary external drivers only when there are vacancies, rather than securing backup drivers in advance."
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