HONG KONG – The delivery man was soaked in gasoline and burned. Wrapped in flames, he protested for what he said were unpaid fees from a company linked to Chinese technology giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.
“I want my money with blood and sweat back,” said the man, Liu Jin, covered in ash, as the police tried to rush him to the hospital on Monday, showed a widely shared video posted on social media.
Liu, 48, who survived but suffered severe burns, is one of the millions of workers in China’s technology sector whose situation has generated online complaints from the country’s internet giants by internet users and the state media. The outcry highlights the strenuous working conditions and cutting-edge labor practices that many blue and white collar workers face as internet companies for which they work in the battle for users.
Liu delivered meals through a subcontractor to Alibaba’s Ele.me food delivery service in Taizhou city in eastern China, according to the local government. Ele.me said it paid for Mr. Liu’s medical expenses and continues to help him and his family. He also said that Ele.me prohibits the agencies he works with from failing to pay delivery users and that he is investigating the case.
In recent weeks, Pinduoduo Inc., a fast-growing e-commerce company that now rivals Alibaba in some ways, has also faced criticism after the deaths of two workers in their twenties: one passed out on returning home from work at 13:30 am and the other one jumped out of a skyscraper. Pinduoduo confirmed the incidents and expressed condolences to the workers’ families.