McDonald's urged to protect riders from heat wave
McDelivery riders hold a press conference in front of the McDonald's Korea headquarters in downtown Seoul, Monday, urging the company to come up with measures to protect them from the heat wave. / Yonhap
By Park Jae-hyuk
McDonald's Korea's deliverymen have begun urging the company to come up with measures to protect them from the unprecedented heat wave, saying the current dress code severely threatens their health.
The deliverymen, who are called McDelivery riders, have demanded the U.S. fast food chain's local subsidiary give them lighter pants for summer and helmets that do not cover the entire head.
They also want the company to provide cooling scarves and vests.
“Although McDonald's provides shirts for summer, it is still mandatory for us to wear jeans,” a McDelivery rider while covering his entire face with a helmet, sunglasses and mask said at a press conference in front of the McDonald's Korea headquarters in downtown Seoul, Monday. “The policy is too harsh, because we should also wear arm pads and knee pads during deliveries.”
The protest has been led by another McDelivery rider Park Jeong-hoon, a former leader of the Arbeit Workers Union, a trade union of part-time workers in Korea.
He has been holding rallies in front of McDonald's restaurants in Seoul since last month, vowing to continue until the company comes up with proper measures for the riders.
In addition to the change in dress code, the protester has been asking McDonald's Korea to pay the riders an additional 100 won ($0.09) per delivery on a day with heat wave warnings. McDonald's Korea pays them the additional money on rainy and snowy days, while they normally receive 400 won per delivery.
Against this backdrop, Woowa Brothers, operator of the nation's leading food delivery app Baedal Minjok, sided with Park, as it decided to pay an extra 300 won per delivery to its deliverymen working outside amid the scorching heat.
Park said he plans to set up a riders' union with deliverymen working for other fast food chains, such as Lotteria, Burger King, Domino's Pizza and Pizza Hut.
McDonald's Korea, however, has declined to accept the riders' demands, citing their safety.
It has claimed long-sleeved shirts and jeans are necessary to protect the drivers on duty from injuries.
The company also stressed it puts top priority on safety of its riders.
“The range of each restaurant's delivery area is short enough to ensure the safety of our riders,” a McDonald's Korea official said. “We also decrease the delivery area range or cease our delivery services on rainy and snowy days for safety reasons.”
The official added McDonald's Korea is not considering giving additional money to its riders on hot days.