report
As unemployment grows in China, more and more people are taking low-wage jobs, such as delivery drivers. More than ten percent of all employees in the country now work as express messengers.
It’s actually a miracle that Ou Jiawang even takes a few minutes to talk. Because he is an express courier in Shanghai. The more he delivers, the more he earns. “I get up at five in the morning and work as long as I can,” he says. “Sometimes until one in the morning.”
In times of big discount battles like “Singles Day”, the stress even increases. “Then I have up to three times more work to do. All packages have to be with the customer on the day the order is placed. If that doesn’t work, I’ll get a fine from my company.”
The equivalent of a monthly salary of 700 euros
In return, Ou Jiawang earns almost twice the normal salary of express courier in the discount battles. That’s currently 5,500 yuan a month, the equivalent of just over 700 euros. In Shanghai it’s not much, but in smaller cities you can get away with it to some extent.
When China was still the “workbench of the world” and lived exclusively from cheap production, migrant work was the trend. Hundreds of millions crowded into the cities with their factories, while only the elderly and children remained in the countryside.
High-tech production is now also being carried out in China, even in remote areas. But there are new problems – especially unemployment. With her a new class has emerged: that of the express messengers.
Even university graduates can’t find jobs
Ou Jiawang comes from Hunan Province. “I used to be a chef and I also had a small company,” says the delivery driver. “During the Covid pandemic, I had to give up my company. If I could, I would work in my old job again.”
But that’s exactly the problem: the Chinese economy has not yet recovered from the Covid lockdowns. Many well-educated Chinese cannot find jobs – even university graduates. So they look for jobs without big investments. Express drivers need an electric scooter and a cell phone, nothing more.
In China, an estimated 84 million people work as suppliers – around eleven percent of all employees. The number has risen sharply in recent years.
“A transitional job at best”
It’s not safe when Ou Jiawang and his colleagues weave through traffic on their scooters. “Running red lights is not an option. Because our license plates are registered, I don’t want a fine,” he says. “Express delivery is at best a temporary job for me. We all know that the economy is not doing well. If things were better, I wouldn’t be a delivery driver.”
It’s hard work for little money – and you get little appreciation for it. Added to this is the hectic pace. “Have you ever heard that an express driver in Shanghai has a break? No!” – and Ou Jiawang sets off with the next load of packages.