 |
| Union members of Korea's largest food delivery platform Baedal Minjok under the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions hold a press conference in front of the company headquarters in Seoul, Friday, calling for an increase in delivery fees. Yonhap |
By Lee Hae-rin
Some 3,000 delivery workers of the nation's largest food delivery platform Baedal Minjok (Baemin) will go on strike on Children's Day, Friday, unless the company increases the basic delivery fee of 3,000 won ($2.24) per order to 4,000 won.
The union of delivery drivers, under the umbrella of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), held a press conference in front of the company headquarters in southeastern Seoul, Friday, and unveiled its plan.
The announcement came one day after the union and the company failed to reach a wage agreement despite their months-long negotiations dating back to last September.
The delivery service was among the key features leading to the company's growth during the COVID-19 pandemic. The number of restaurants registered on the platform has more than doubled from 2019's 136,000 to over 300,000 last year.
Amid strict social distancing regulations and a nationwide ban on indoor group gatherings, growing demand for food delivery led to an increase in the platform's number of transactions. Baemin saw over 1.1 billion delivery orders last year ― nearly a triple of 400 million from the pre-pandemic level in 2019.
As a result, Baemin's operator Woowa Brothers saw its sales total 2.9 trillion won last year, a 47 percent increase from the previous year, according to the company. Its operating profit stood at 424.1 billion won.
The union has been arguing that their contributions to the company's growth have not been recognized. They have demanded that the company break the nine-year-long pay freeze and increase the delivery fee per delivery.
Furthermore, the union has been urging the company to stop discriminating against drivers in rural regions by paying less delivery fees than those in Seoul and its surrounds. It also called for the company to give more responsibilities to full-time drivers.
Ahead of the planned strike, 400 delivery workers plan to stage a protest in front of the company's headquarters, Monday.
![[INTERVIEW] Wellington mayor's love for Korean culture spurs collaboration](https://img.koreatimes.co.kr/upload/thumbnailV2/6fcc82645abc473980e0e10997ef2bf9.jpg/dims/resize/178/optimize)
![[INTERVIEW] ONEUS returns as 'mermaid prince'](https://img.koreatimes.co.kr/upload/thumbnailV2/8cc3b8d992cd4b8bb43395b014670ca2.jpg/dims/resize/178/optimize)
![[INTERVIEW] With '30 Days,' Kang Ha-neul finds new level of comfort in acting](https://img.koreatimes.co.kr/upload/thumbnailV2/83a5770de8d8420da3634fb8b78266c1.jpg/dims/resize/178/optimize)
