JD Makes Foray into Food Delivery, Offering Employment Insurance and Housing Benefits to Full-Time Riders

TMTPOST -- Chinese e-commerce giant JD has unveiled plans on Wednesday to offer comprehensive benefits to its food delivery riders starting March 1 following its entry into the food delivery market dominated by existing two giants.

Full-time riders will receive full social insurance and corporate housing contributions, while part-time riders will be covered by accident and health insurance.

With this announcement, JD becomes the first online platform in China to provide such extensive insurance coverage for its delivery riders, underscoring its commitment to ensuring the well-being of its workforce.

As of press time, the company has received 200,000 applications from catering merchants for registering on JD platform.

In a market where labor rights have often been sidelined or even neglected, JD.com’s approach marks a monumental shift. China’s food delivery sector is currently dominated by Meituan and Alibaba’s Ele.me. Meituan also released plans on Wednesday to begin offering social insurance to both full-time and part-time riders in the second quarter of this year.

JD.com’s food delivery service offers a pricing structure similar to that of established players like Meituan and Ele.me, including minimum order thresholds, delivery charges, and time frames. However, JD stands out by exclusively partnering with chain restaurant brands to address consumer demand for safe, high-quality food.

The platform offers two delivery options: merchant self-delivery and Dada, a third-party delivery service, with Dada serving as the primary method.

JD.com promises comprehensive support for merchants, aiming to help them optimize profits while encouraging the sustainable growth of the food delivery sector. To attract businesses, JD is waiving commission fees for merchants who join before May 1, 2025, whereas Meituan charges a commission of six to eight percent.

China’s food delivery market reached about 1.2 trillion yuan ($164.75 billion) in 2023, making up 22.6% of total catering industry revenue, according to the 2024 China Catering Industry Annual Report. Online marketing models, including food delivery, have become a key revenue stream for the catering industry.

Yang Daqing, a supply chain expert and member of the China Federation of Logistics & Purchasing, noted that JD's initiatives are not only a major business move but also a step in the right direction for the industry’s social responsibility. By becoming the first platform to offer social insurance and housing funds to full-time delivery riders, JD is setting a valuable example for the entire industry.

Before extending benefits to food delivery riders, JD.com had already established itself as a leader in logistics by offering similar benefits to its frontline logistics employees, including couriers, sorters, transport drivers, and other essential staff. Since the launch of JD Logistics in 2007, the company has provided social insurance and housing fund benefits to more than 1,200 retirees, including several former delivery workers.

Liu Congjiang, the first retired JD courier, has now received a pension and medical benefits, which serves as a good example of JD’s lawful treatment of its employees. Liu, who worked for JD in Suqian City, Jiangsu Province, spent years working as a courier and is now enjoying the security that the company’s welfare benefits have afforded him in his retirement.