Singapore—A Sunday morning (May 16) Facebook post from actor Hossan Leong went viral, although it had nothing to do with the arts.
Instead, it was a narrative that Mr Leong shared from the perspective of a food delivery rider, along with a photo of an exhausted-looking young man in a green Grabfood shirt.
It begins, “Sometimes, life feels like sh*t. It feels even sh*ttier when you are a food delivery rider and being rude at.”
Mr Leong attributed the narrative to Mr Jerry Toh, a coach.
In the post, a rider talks about the rudeness with which the riders are treated by restaurant staff, when they ask if the orders are ready during peak hours.
The rider acknowledged that many restaurants are understaffed these days and have difficulty managing delivery and walk-in orders.
But he added, “The common replies we often get shouted at during peak hours? ‘You can, you wait. If you cannot wait, Cancel!’”
And while the riders may cancel their orders, he wished they would be told how long they would have to wait so they could make an informed decision.
Moreover, there is a marked difference at times between how food delivery riders are treated and attitudes towards walk-in customers.
“Some choose to shout at us yet greet their walk-in customers with a big smile and serve them first before proceeding with our orders. And when we checked our orders again? They would simply reply ‘Preparing! Preparing!’”
He added that food delivery riders are a source of encouragement to each other, telling one another to wait patiently, but the stress and pressure they go through is real.
“Peak hours is the only time we can get more orders. The rest of the timings we are basically just waiting for orders.”
The rider also pointed out that there are restaurants that accept delivery riders even when they are not ready for them, like in one restaurant where he had to wait for half an hour.
This causes customers to wait as well.
The problem is that the riders end up getting blamed.
“Here’s the thing. No rider in the right state of mind would want to delay your orders. Get this clear.
“Everyone wants to clear their current order ASAP and receive the next order. Some are rushing for their daily targets, some are rushing for their incentives.”
He told of a rainy day when he had an order which was too big to fit in his bag. There were raindrops on his bag, though the order was “intact”.
“He asked me. ‘How come the bag so wet?’
‘Er.. Because it is raining Sir?’
“Most probably, he gave me a 1 star rating,” the rider wrote.
He did acknowledge, however, that “there are many kind souls out there”, customers who show genuine care, and “It’s just the minorities out there that spoil our day/ mood.”
The rider appealed for customers to be patient with the riders.
“So, the next time when u order ur food. Pls have some patience. Delivery guys are human too. They are not superman (Ok, maybe some are ironman).
“When ur next order arrives, thank your delivery guy. If u can, tip him a dollar or two if you liked his service. He will be grateful.”
After Mr Leong’s post began to go viral, he added an update:
“Let’s do something about it!
Idea:
1) order an extra drink in your order and give it to the delivery person!
2) tip (that’s always good)
… this way we can show a little kindness and encouragement…”
/TISG
Read also: Wife of food delivery rider killed in Kovan accident accepting donations
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