Delivery companies raise fees to boost couriers' incomes

Six major parcel delivery companies have announced they will increase delivery fees starting on Wednesday to boost couriers' incomes and better protect their rights.

Express delivery companies ZT, YT, STO, Yunda, Best and J&T will charge an extra 0.1 yuan (2 cents) per parcel, with the extra money to go into couriers' pockets.

An experienced courier usually handles about 200 parcels a day, which means the increase would boost their monthly income by about 500 yuan.

The move is a response to a national guideline on protecting couriers' rights that was issued last month.

According to a survey released by China Post News in March, more than half of China's couriers earned less than 5,000 yuan a month last year. Only 1.3 percent had monthly incomes exceeding 10,000 yuan.

ZT announced the fee increase on Friday, becoming the first company to do so. It said the extra money will be paid to couriers via the digital wallet in the company's mobile application, and parcel delivery stations will not be allowed to lower current delivery fees.

YT said the increased income must be given to front-line couriers, and provincial offices or parcel delivery outlets will not be allowed to withhold the money. The company will carry out inspections to ensure the money goes into couriers' pockets.

The State Post Bureau and six ministry-level government organs released a guideline in July to better protect the rights of express delivery workers, including providing more stable salaries and better insurance.

Chen Kai, deputy head of the bureau, told a news conference last month that the industry will set a standard wage in accordance with the labor input.

He also said that express delivery companies will be evaluated on their protection of couriers' rights.

Several couriers China Daily spoke with said they will wait to see how their income changes next month.

China's express delivery sector has prospered in the past decade. Last year, China handled 83.3 billion parcels. It is expected to handle 95.5 billion this year.

Couriers have been called "busy bees" bringing daily necessities to people as online shopping has become an inseparable part of Chinese people's lives, but couriers also endure long working hours for little pay, and malicious complaints can sometimes see them be hit with large fines.

Jin Jinghua, director of the bureau's marketing supervision department, said the guideline will spur delivery companies to identify fake and malicious complaints to better protect couriers' rights.

Jin said some delivery services arbitrarily issue fines in response to customer complaints without listening to the courier's side of the story, which ignores their own management problems and places an extra burden on couriers.

YT said it will strengthen management to address the handling of complaints.

Yang Daqing, a parcel delivery industry specialist at the China Federation of Logistics and Purchase, said the fee increase shows the industry is moving on from cutthroat price competition to focus on high-quality development.

The companies said the increased fee will not affect the delivery charge paid by consumers.

Zhao Xiaomin, from the Shanghai Municipal Transport Commission's post and express delivery committee, said the adjustment heralds the end of a price battle in the express delivery industry.

He said the next several months will be key in improving service quality in the sector.