Ecommerce companies offer temporary jobs to thousands amid coronavirus outbreak

This article is co-written by Sarah Dai.

Chinese ecommerce platforms are scrambling to hire thousands of temporary workers, as the new virus’ outbreak and government-imposed travel restrictions have increased consumer demand for online grocery delivery services.

Their recruitment initiatives include hiring part-time staff from small firms and restaurants, whose operations are currently struggling amid the health crisis and general business slowdown.

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Ecommerce unicorn Meicai, which delivers fresh produce straight from farms to restaurants and stores, announced over the weekend that it was looking to hire 6,000 truck drivers and 4,000 sorting handlers because its frontline employees are working at “full capacity.”

Founded in 2014, Beijing-based Meicai said this temporary workforce would be based at its warehouses and delivery centers. A company spokeswoman confirmed the recruitment drive, but had no further comment on what was previously announced.

Grocery retail chain Freshippo, known as Hema in Chinese, had earlier initiated its own recruitment program for temporary staff from restaurants that have recently suspended their operations. This retailer, which has operations in 22 cities across mainland China as of September, is owned and operated by Alibaba Group Holding, the parent company of the South China Morning Post.

Through its official Weibo account, Freshippo announced last week that 500 staff from Yunhaiyao and Youth Restaurant would join the company. It also said another 1,000 employees from Xibei, the country’s largest restaurant chain specializing in northwest Chinese cuisine, and 500 more staff from other restaurants, would form part of its temporary workforce.

A representative from Alibaba had no further comment beyond what Freshippo posted on Weibo.

That hiring spree has come after Jia Guolong, chairman and founder of Xibei, indicated challenging times for his business, according to a widely circulated interview with research and consulting firm Chinaventure. He said Xibei, which has 400 stores and more than 20,000 staff, would “not be able to survive in three months” if the coronavirus crisis continues.

“We pay 156 million yuan (US$22.3 million) a month in employees’ salaries,” Jia said. “Our cash flow can only keep this up for three months.”

JD Logistics, a unit of ecommerce company JD.com, said last week that it will open more than 20,000 frontline positions, including warehousemen, sorters, couriers, and drivers, across its operations nationwide, according to a post on JD.com’s official WeChat account.

More than 10 companies have also carried out various forms of staffing cooperation with JD Logistics, according to the company. These involved more than 700 workers operating in the firm’s logistics parks, transfer centers, and sales offices. JD.com confirmed the hiring effort, but had no further comment on what was posted on WeChat.

The increased demand for temporary staff by ecommerce companies followed a rise in grocery deliveries across the country, as the Chinese government implemented rigid travel restrictions and locked down communities to help stop the spread of the deadly coronavirus.