Singapore-based e-commerce platform Shopee is fighting back an accusation that it does not pay its Indonesian couriers a decent wage.
A tweet containing a chat between a user and a courier of the platform’s delivery service, Shopee Express, recently went viral. In the chat, the user asked why there had been a delay in the shipment of his package, to which the courier said that Shopee Express couriers have gone on strike after their pay for each package delivered was reduced from IDR2,000 (US$0.14) to IDR1,500 (US$0.10).
It’s not clear by their exchange if Shopee Express couriers earn anything aside from the aforementioned pay.
On Sunday, the hashtag #ShopeeTindasKurir (Shopee oppresses couriers) became a trending topic on Twitter, with some netizens posting their own exchanges with their neighborhood couriers. In one tweet, a courier said that he doesn’t receive a basic salary besides the reduced delivery pay, while couriers of other companies say they receive basic salaries but no incentives, including for fuel.
In a statement, Shopee Indonesia denied underpaying couriers, but did not specifically outline how much they regularly earn.
“Shopee Indonesia guarantees decent earnings for partner drivers of Shopee Express. The incentive scheme follows the market rate and is guaranteed to always follow existing regulations,” Shopee Indonesia Executive Director Handhika Jahja wrote in a statement yesterday.
Amid the popularity of the #ShopeeTindasKurir hashtag, Shopee launched a mobile phone giveaway program along with its own viral marketing campaign, but netizens refused to believe that it wasn’t an attempt to silence the negative press surrounding the company.
CEO of Shopee as soon as they getting called out by netizen and realize that the Giveaway isn't really that work to put down the trending #ShopeeTindasKurir pic.twitter.com/jll1i5azmQ
— je suis hoe desu (@SADCASTHIC) April 11, 2021
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