E-commerce company Coupang created more than 13,000 jobs in the first through third quarters this year. The steady increase in labor demand stems from reinvesting money earned through retail businesses such as Rocket Delivery back into logistics centers and other facilities. A large share of the new jobs are for people in their 20s and 30s outside Seoul.
Amid this, Coupang appears on edge over a recently raised plan centered on the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) delivery union to "ban dawn deliveries." The measure could hold back business expansion and job creation.
According to National Pension Service (NPS) data on the 6th, as of on Sept., the number of direct domestic employees at Coupang and its logistics and parcel subsidiaries, Coupang Fulfillment Services (CFS) and Coupang Logistics Services (CLS), totaled 93,502. That is an increase of 13,413 from the end of last year (80,089).
Coupang is increasing headcount the fastest among large business groups in Korea. An analysis by Korea CXO Institute of employment changes from 2023 to 2024 at 3,301 domestic affiliates of 92 large business groups designated by the Fair Trade Commission found that Coupang's employment increase of 15,179 topped major conglomerates, outpacing Samsung Group (6,477) and Hyundai Motor Group (6,188).
A large portion of the jobs Coupang added over the past two years went to people in their 20s and 30s outside Seoul. According to Coupang Fulfillment Services, as of the end of last year, people in their 20s and 30s accounted for 51% of directly hired employees at logistics centers outside Seoul. Of roughly 93,500 directly hired employees belonging to Coupang Fulfillment Services, about 70,000 are affiliated with regional logistics centers.
Coupang's rapid headcount growth stems from investments in same-day and dawn delivery logistics networks. Over the past 10 years, Coupang has invested more than 6.2 trillion won in building logistics centers, installing parcel-sorting robots, and hiring delivery drivers. Last year, it said it would invest more than 3 trillion won over three years through 2027 to expand the Rocket Delivery coverage area nationwide.
CoupangInc, Coupang's parent company, posted revenue of 12.8455 trillion won and operating profit of 224.5 billion won in the third quarter this year. Quarterly revenue hit an all-time high. CoupangInc said it invested 1.235 trillion won in the third quarter this year in logistics infrastructure and automation technology, up 34% from a year earlier.
However, there are concerns that the "ban on dawn deliveries" plan, recently raised by the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), could hinder business expansion. The parcel delivery union under the KCTU recently proposed at a meeting of the parcel social dialogue body launched under the lead of the Democratic Party of Korea that deliveries be completely banned between midnight (12 a.m.) and 5 a.m. The union argued, "Continuous fixed overnight work like at Coupang destroys circadian rhythms and causes serious health problems such as sleep disorders, cardiovascular disease and cancer."
Most Coupang delivery drivers, however, are pushing back against the proposal. The Coupang Partners Association (CPA), an organization of Coupang's contract parcel drivers, recently conducted an emergency survey of 2,405 night and dawn delivery drivers, and 93% of respondents said they oppose "restrictions on late-night deliveries."
The Federation of Korean Trade Unions also differs from the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU). Kim Dong-myung, Chairperson of the Federation of Korean Trade Unions, said at a meeting the previous day, "We do not agree with a 'complete ban on dawn deliveries,'" adding, "Rather than imposing an immediate blanket ban, this is a task that should be improved step by step."
A retail industry official said, "Dawn delivery is already essential infrastructure used by the vast majority of the public and serves as a massive job ecosystem supporting direct and indirect employment for hundreds of thousands," adding, "A complete ban on dawn deliveries could have a negative effect of eliminating jobs for younger generations and vulnerable groups."