Overworked, underpaid and thoroughly fed up, Wang's troubles deepened even
further when authorities abruptly locked down the delivery driver's Beijing
apartment block earlier this month.
اضافة اعلان
Officials in the
Chinese capital have doubled down on the country's hallmark
zero-Covid policy in recent weeks, one of an array of cities to impose sweeping
shutdowns, mass testing and teleworking mandates as caseloads have hit all-time
highs.
Wang is not alone in feeling frustrated.
The ruling Communist Party's uncompromising zero-Covid strategy -- now in
force for about three years -- has stoked anger and resentment, with widespread
and sometimes violent protests kicking off across China's major cities.
Pandemic fatigue has been on the rise for some time, as a recent lightening
of virus curbs has coincided with record infection tallies, prompting a
patchwork of onerous restrictions in multiple major cities.
China is the last major economy wedded to a zero-Covid strategy, but
maintaining relatively low numbers of cases and deaths has constrained its
economic recovery, disrupted supply chains and hammered employment.
- 'I have no
choice' -
Demand for deliveries has soared under the tightening curbs as millions of
housebound urbanites have turned to an army of low-paid couriers -- mostly
migrants from other provinces -- to supply takeaway lunches and grocery orders.
But this time the restrictions have crept deep into places where drivers
live, shutting many inside without pay and forcing others to choose between
having a place to sleep and earning enough money to survive.
Wang, who scoots back and forth across a wealthy financial district
delivering food orders for internet giant Meituan, said his housing compound
was cordoned off on November 7 after two Covid cases were discovered.
Desperate not to lose his income -- about 250 yuan ($34) a day -- the
20-year-old broke lockdown rules by vaulting a fence to make his shifts,
sneaking back in under cover of darkness.
"I have no choice. If I don't make money, I can't pay rent," said
the native of the industrial northern province of Shanxi.
"Lots of delivery guys don't have anywhere to live at the moment,"
he told AFP outside a deserted office block on a cold winter afternoon last
week.
"I'm really dissatisfied with the Chinese government, because other
countries aren't strict about Covid any more," he said.
"We're going to such great lengths... and I don't feel it's necessary,
because nobody is dying from it."
AFP withheld Wang's full name to protect him from potential repercussions
for breaking lockdown and criticising the state.
- Sleeping rough -
When a shutdown loomed over Gu Qiang's housing compound last week, the
Meituan driver chose to sleep in his car.
"Spending 30 yuan to keep the engine running all night is still cheaper
than getting a hotel," the gruff northeast China native said.
"Some of my friends are living outside -- they dare not go home."
Several couriers interviewed by AFP described heavier workloads in recent
weeks as lockdowns have left their companies short of labour.
While some said they were happy to take on money-spinning extra orders, most
said they had endured longer working hours, extra stress and more negative
interactions with customers.
They also said they had not received any additional support from Meituan or
the companies to which delivery services have been outsourced.
Authorities last year launched an investigation into food delivery platforms
following claims of exploitative labour practices including algorithms that
effectively forced couriers to drive dangerously to meet tight delivery times.
Meituan did not respond to an AFP request for comment prior to publication.
But the company told the state-run China Daily newspaper last week that it
had paid for hotel rooms for some stranded workers and welcomed calls for help
from couriers in similar situations.
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