South Korea’s self-employment landscape is witnessing a significant shift as delivery workers, widely known as “riders”, have surpassed traditional self-employment jobs such as fast food restaurants, cafes, and retail stores.
The number of self-employed people who work alone without employees in the transportation and warehousing sector, which includes riders and delivery drivers, reached 690,524 as of October last year, surpassing the wholesale and retail sector’s 687,303 for the first time since 2013, according to Statistics Korea on Jan 9.
This trend continued into November, with the transportation sector leading at 693,767 self-employed workers compared with the retail sector’s 616,082.
Self-employed people who work alone or with family make up 75% of South Korea’s self-employed population.
Historically, a significant portion of these entrepreneurs, approximately 17 to 18% as of last year, worked in the wholesale and retail sector, operating businesses such as restaurants, cafes, bakeries, and clothing stores.
The self-employment landscape has been undergoing major changes as the transportation and warehousing sector, fueled by a surge in demand for delivery since the Covid-19 pandemic, overtook the wholesale and retail sector in terms of self-employment numbers as of the end of last year.
According to Choi, 45 who used to work as a construction electrician before he switched to delivering food three years ago, he now earns $2000 to $4000 (3 to 5 million won) on average monthly, a change that has brought him more financial stability and job satisfaction.
“In my previous job, the inconsistent nature of the work caused a lot of anxiety. Delivery work offers the flexibility to earn as much as I want, and there’s always work available,” Choi said.
“Delivery has a low barrier to entry as it does not require a lot of capital or specialised skills, and offers workers the liberty to work independently. Many people are leaving their previous jobs to get behind the wheel of a motorcycle,” said an industry insider. “– The Chosun Daily
