Students find extra income in food delivery, survey says

During the COVID-19 epidemic, about 12,000 post-2000 generation college students have taken part-time jobs in food delivery service, according to a report jointly released by online catering platform Eleme and Xinhua on Wednesday.

In 2019, the number of new recruits for Eleme in the post-2000 generation increased nearly threefold year-on-year, the report said.

Post-2000 generation members who take part-time jobs at Eleme can earn an extra 3,000 yuan a month on average.

Among the post-2000 generation who have taken part-time jobs to deliver food, 26 percent of them have bachelor's degree or above, and 47 percent have some higher education.

Chengdu, Shanghai and Changsha are the most popular locations for these young deliverymen.

In addition to the flexible nature of the work, which fits in with students' daily life, some students take the job to reduce stress during exams, the report said. Moreover, part-time delivery is a practical way for them to get in touch with people, some students said.

The report pointed out the post-2000 generation deliverymen have higher recognition and preference degrees than other generations. Of these, half would recommend the job to other people, and 40 percent will try other new careers.