Exclusive: Delivery riders speak out about risky situations and financial penalties as WhatsApp messages reveal how local managers respond to stolen orders
Violet Zhang* was in Melbourne’s Bourke Street Mall last month with a carrier bag full of takeaway orders: a bubble tea order for HungryPanda and McDonald’s for DoorDash.
While waiting at traffic lights, a man wrapped in a blanket grabbed the HungryPanda order from his bike. Zhang says he wished the DoorDash order had been stolen instead.
He says the difference between the orders was the risk of lost income. Zhang knew the loss of the HungryPanda order could result in less money that shift – he says the company financially penalises its riders when an order is lost or damaged.
HungryPanda rider Feng Jianming ‘worked in the rain, delivering from morning until dark’ – until he was allegedly murderedRead more“I felt so down, and thought: a half day’s work is now useless,” Zhang says.
WhatsApp messages viewed by Guardian Australia, and translated from Chinese to English, show a network of HungryPanda dispatchers in group chats with delivery riders, discussing whether the riders should cover the cost of lost or stolen orders.
Zhang, a Chinese international student who has worked for HungryPanda for more than two years, says he took a video as evidence because without it he might have been forced to cover the cost of the stolen order.
Video allegedly shows man stealing a food delivery order from a HungryPanda driver – loopIn the video Zhang can be heard shouting, hoping to retrieve what was stolen.
After the incident, HungryPanda deducted just over $30 for the bubble tea order that was only worth about $25, screenshots viewed by Guardian Australia show. It was later successfully appealed internally to company management.
Dispatcher 2 Order number [redacted order number]
Refund amount: Rider’s deduction: 30.50A$
Details: The rider took initiative to contact and said that he was robbed by thief.
“This deduction is really unreasonable,” Zhang says.
He says the video shows him trying to retrieve the order because he “was afraid of being punished”. In hindsight, Zhang realises it was potentially “really dangerous” and that filming someone in this way might only exacerbate the situation.
The alleged murder of Feng Jianming, a 47-year old HungryPanda delivery rider, last week has reignited focus on the safety conditions of gig economy workers, including claims some are financially penalised for lost or stolen orders. There is no suggestion the practice of financially penalising riders contributed to Feng’s death.
HungryPanda says it has no policy automatically requiring riders to compensate for undelivered orders. But current and former riders have told Guardian Australia they have had their income deducted for lost and stolen orders.
Two months before the bubble tea was stolen on Bourke Street, Zhang had another encounter where the order he was delivering was stolen. He says the person who stole the order spat on him. When he relayed his order had been stolen in a WhatsApp chat with HungryPanda staff, a dispatcher asked: “Can you snatch it back?”
Zhang A homeless person snatched it off me
Dispatcher Alright, I’ll report this then.
Dispatcher Just go ahead and tap ‘Complete’ on your order.
Dispatcher There’s nothing you can do if it’s snatched
He responded that it wasn’t possible and that the person who stole the order had spat on him.
Zhang was fined $30 for the lost order, but managed to also successfully appeal this fine after discussing what had happened with his managers.
Every time Jay Wong* would begin a shift ferrying Chinese takeaway through the streets of Melbourne, he would make a mental calculation in his mind. “If this order value is over $50, and I meet someone who wants to steal or rob an order … I will try to save my order,” says Wong, a Chinese international student and former HungryPanda delivery rider.
In March last year, Wong had just over $52 deducted from his pay after the takeaway bag carrying three bowls of soup he was delivering broke, screenshots viewed by Guardian Australia show.
Wong Carried it to the shop door and the bag broke
Suburban Dispatcher Can it still be delivered to the customer or should the item be withheld.
Wong I’ll deliver the chicken wings first.
Suburban Dispatcher Can you see what item it is?
Suburban Dispatcher Finish the order first.
Wong When it fell on the ground, I picked it up and it was like rain.
Suburban Dispatcher Take a picture of the finished order
Suburban Dispatcher The customer will confirm
Suburban Dispatcher Brother, did you spill it on yourself?
Suburban Dispatcher This order amount is relatively high, can you accept it?
Wong There’s a problem with the way the shop wrapped it
Suburban Dispatcher When the time comes, after customer service sends you formal deduction notification, you can “at” (T/N i think they mean @) the manager to help you have a look
Suburban Dispatcher Let’s go according to the process for now.
Dispatch Customer Service Order Number: [redacted order number]
Platform: [HP]
City: [Melbourne]
Responsibility: Delivery
Problem Type: Driver lost
Refund amount: User refunds 52.56
Problem details: Lost food
Party responsible: Rider
Dispatch Customer Service There’s nothing I can do.
A HungryPanda rider who also delivers for Uber Eats says the latter does not take money for lost or stolen orders. Uber Eats says if a rider cancelled for safety reasons after picking up an order, the order cost would not be deducted from them. A DoorDash spokesperson says its riders are not penalised or required to pay for stolen orders.
HungryPanda, an international food delivery company founded in the UK by Chinese national Eric Liu, targets the Chinese expatriate market in 10 countries. In 2022, HungryPanda acquired its Australian competitor EASI and the company now operates in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide.
It remains a popular choice for Chinese nationals in Australia due to its Chinese-language app.
‘Extremely opaque’
Police on Monday charged a 51-year-old man with Feng’s murder.
They allege Feng and another delivery rider confronted a man who was tampering with their bikes. Feng died at the scene; the other rider was hospitalised with serious injuries.
HungryPanda points to the Victoria police statement, which says the incident began when the man allegedly tried to tamper with the riders’ bikes, which are their own property.
The company says “riders will not be penalised for being unable to complete deliveries due to genuine safety concerns”.
“Under no circumstances are riders expected to put their personal safety at risk to protect food orders, vehicles or other belongings,” a statement on Monday said.
The Transport Workers’ Union national secretary, Michael Kaine, says the union has received dozens of reports from workers about income allegedly deducted by HungryPanda for lost or stolen orders.
Kaine reviewed screenshots provided by Guardian Australia and says they demonstrate workers’ income is being deducted.
Man accused of HungryPanda delivery rider’s stabbing murder yells and exposes himself in Melbourne court Read more“What these screenshots show are financial penalties imposed on hard-working delivery riders, based on what workers report to be unilateral and arbitrary decisions by local managers to dock their pay for missing meals,” he says.
Kaine accuses HungryPanda of prioritising “getting a meal delivered over the safety of their human riders”.
A HungryPanda delivery rider terms and conditions document, viewed by Guardian Australia, states that the company is entitled to withhold, deduct or adjust “all or part of the payment” owed to a rider if they fail to properly perform “delivery services to customers due to your acts or omissions” under circumstances in a policy. HungryPanda did not respond when asked what these circumstances were.
Andrew Copolov, who previously founded the Melbourne-based the Gig Workers Hub, which has since closed, says HungryPanda’s policy on deducting is “extremely opaque”.
“They claim this is not happening, however countless riders have shared screenshots of WhatsApp conversations or in-app evidence of deductions,” he says.
“It’s still at the discretion of the particular HungryPanda employee, which is why HungryPanda can put out a statement saying this doesn’t happen automatically.”
The TWU has written to WorkSafe Victoria asking it to investigate Feng’s death and whether any workplace factors contributed to the incident.
A WorkSafe spokesperson told Guardian Australia this week it would assess the incident to determine whether there had been any breaches of the state’s Occupational Health and Safety Act and help police where appropriate.
Do you know more? Contact adeshola.ore@theguardian.com or bertin.huynh@guardian.com