POST
PRODUCTION
SCRIPT
Foreign
Correspondent
2021
Dead
on Arrival
29
mins 37 secs
©2021
ABC
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Phone:
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Precis
|
We’re
all relying on home deliveries to get us through the pandemic, but do we ever
spare a thought for the workers who bring them to us? In
South Korea, the welfare of delivery workers has become a major issue.
Twenty-one delivery workers have died since the start of the pandemic, and
many say it is caused by relentless work pressures and long hours. Lee
Seong Wook, 44, is a delivery driver. He works six days a week from early in
the morning until late at night and rarely sees his children. "I'd
be lying if I said it isn't tough for me. But it’s a matter of survival. My
children won't eat if I don't earn." Lee’s
colleague, 47-year-old driver Im Gwang Soo, recently suffered a massive brain
haemorrhage and fell into a coma. His life is hanging by a thread. Before his
collapse, Im Gwang Soo had been working over 90 hours a week. As
companies compete with each other to offer faster
delivery times, distribution workers and drivers have borne the brunt,
putting in longer and longer hours. The
ABC’s South Korea correspondent Carrington Clarke goes on the road with the
drivers and hears stories of their struggles as they race against the clock
to deliver more packages than ever before. He
rides with 61-year-old driver Huh Wonjea, the son
of an activist and fighter in the Korean Independence Movement. Mr Huh says
South Koreans worked hard to rebuild their country after the war, but not
everyone is reaping the rewards. "The
whole country’s been developing, but still in terms of the fair distribution
of the assets or human rights ... not really fairly developed yet." Lee
Seong Wook is a branch leader of the delivery workers’ union. He’s determined
that his generation will be the one to force change. "If
our generation can't change it, it’ll be passed down to the next generation
and then what we sacrifice for our children would be meaningless." It’s
not just the drivers who are suffering. Those working in the distribution centres
are also being pushed to their limits and beyond. 27-year-old
Jang Deok-joon died of a heart attack. He’d been working long hours in the
"fulfillment centre" of e-commerce company Coupang, described as
the "Amazon" of South Korea. The government ruled it was
"death by overwork". "These
really clever people used their brains only to work out how to squeeze as
much blood from the workers as possible within the boundaries of the
law," says Deokjoon’s mother. In
response to union pressure, some companies have introduced restrictions on
delivering parcels after 9pm. But many drivers still have parcels left. If
they don’t deliver them, their workload the following day will be even
greater, so they keep working. For any food items they deliver after the 9pm cutoff, they’ll pay late fees. They’re damned
if they do, damned if they don’t. Dead
on Arrival is a timely and cautionary tale of what happens when workers are
pushed to the limit in the name of consumer convenience and company profits. "If
consumers don’t start thinking about it there will be other victims. Do you
really think it’s okay to turn a blind eye or force someone to be sacrificed
for your convenience?" asks Deokjoon’s mother. |
|
Night.
Incheon streets |
Music |
00:10 |
Title:
DEAD ON ARRIVAL |
|
00:28 |
Super:
Incheaon, South Korea |
|
00:33 |
Huh
gets in to delivery truck |
HUH: 4:25 is the time that
I get into my truck. Bit sleepy but I turn on my radio, usually, so I try to
boost up myself by listening to all that old goodies
like this. And I try myself to be bit, you know, cheerful and then bit fresh,
so I can enjoy my whole day, in fact. |
00:46 |
Huh
listens to radio in truck |
This is national anthem,
though. The starting of the day. This is Korean national anthem. |
01:38 |
Drone
shot. Truck on empty street |
RADIO:
"God protect and preserve our nation!" CARRINGTON
CLARKE, Reporter: 61-year-old delivery driver |
01:46 |
Huh
driving |
Huh
Won-Jae is a subcontractor with the Korean Postal Service. He works an
average of 14 hours a day, or 70 hours a week. |
02:02 |
Huh
drives into Korean Postal Service
warehouse |
RADIO:
"Great Korean people stay true to the great Korean way!" |
02:13 |
|
CARRINGTON
CLARKE, Reporter: His shift begins at the regional distribution centre. There
are thousands of parcels here waiting to be sorted, not by warehouse staff
but by the drivers themselves. |
02:32 |
Carrington
to camera in warehouse. Super: |
This is one of the major
complaints of these delivery drivers. They spend hours at the beginning of
their shift sorting and then loading these packages onto their truck. And
they say they’re not paid for those hours. |
02:46 |
|
HUH: Our job is deliver the stuff, that’s our job. |
02:59 |
Huh
interview |
It’s clearly stated in our
contract. But before that we have to spend like four
hours every day before we begin our job, without payment. |
03:04 |
Huh
sorts parcels |
CARRINGTON
CLARKE, Reporter: Drivers are only paid when they deliver an item, around $1
to $1.50 per parcel. The boom in online shopping due to COVID-19 means
drivers are spending even longer sorting packages, delaying when they can
start their deliveries. Since the pandemic began, 21 delivery workers have
died. Unions say, it’s from overwork. |
03:14 |
Workers
sort parcels |
HUH: It’s not just car
accident, like that., they just collapsed during the work. |
03:46 |
Huh
interview |
This is not right. This is
not right. They claim that the government successfully managed the defence of
this pandemic situation, which might be true. Then, who was the one who was
sacrificed to support them? We are the one. We are the ones who are
sacrificed to support the system. |
03:51 |
|
Music
|
04:22 |
Drone
shots city high rise |
CARRINGTON
CLARKE, Reporter: South Korea has the longest working hours in the developed
world. |
04:26 |
City
GVs |
Hard
work transformed this country from a war-torn Japanese colony into the
world’s tenth-largest economy in just a few generations. Leaders promised the
people that their sacrifices would pay off. Their children would reap the
rewards. But many Koreans say they’re still paying the cost. |
04:31 |
Delivery
workers protest rally |
Death
caused by overwork is so common, there’s a word for it. Kwarosa. UNION LEADER:
"Comrades! I’m glad to be here. I’ll say hello to you by shouting fight!
Fight!" |
04:55 |
|
CARRINGTON
CLARKE, Reporter: Delivery workers stage a rally in downtown Seoul. In January
this year, logistics companies agreed to hire new staff to sort parcels, to
reduce working hours, and to stop deliveries after 9pm. Six months on, unions
say the promises have not been honoured. |
05:14 |
|
UNION LEADER: "6500
hard-working members of the Delivery Workers’ Union are gathered here from
across the country. Why are we here? It’s for the agreement. The promised
date has already passed." |
05:35 |
|
CARRINGTON
CLARKE, Reporter: The protest comes just days after
yet another driver collapsed. On June 13th, a 48-year-old father of two named
Im Gwang Soo suffered a massive brain haemorrhage and fell into a coma. |
05:51 |
|
UNION LEADER:
"Apparently, he worked over 90 hours a week, which is unbelievable. Does
it even make sense?" |
06:06 |
Lee
at protest rally |
CARRINGTON
CLARKE, Reporter: Lee Seong Wook worked side-by-side with Gwang Soo. He knows
how easily it could’ve been him. |
06:14 |
Delivery
vans |
LEE: The conveyor belt was
broken again, making me waste an hour. |
06:22 |
Lee
driving |
Only the other day he
tapped me on the shoulder and said, “Hey, it’s tough, isn’t it? Come on, we
can do it!” But he collapsed first. It wasn’t because he was weak. But with
COVID and a surge in the volume of items we’re leaving even later for
deliveries, and drivers have no choice but to deliver through the night,
until dawn. |
06:31 |
Lee
interview |
Any items left in here just
get carried forward and as they pile up, drivers get desperate. The vicious
cycle repeats itself and you end up with cases like Mr Im Gwang Soo. |
06:56 |
Drone
shots over residential areas |
CARRINGTON
CLARKE, Reporter: Like Gwang Soo, Seong Wook is in his 40s with two kids and
works around 90 hours a week. His workload means he rarely sees his children.
|
07:12 |
Lee
making deliveries |
LEE: Well, this is my first
house in the area. |
07:27 |
|
CARRINGTON
CLARKE, Reporter: After sorting packages all morning, it’s afternoon before
he can make his first delivery. LEE: After seven hours,
I’ve finally arrived at my first house. Welcome to my first house! |
07:31 |
|
Music |
07:50 |
|
LEE: "Hello? Delivery
man." |
08:03 |
|
LEE: "Good bye!" |
08:14 |
|
Music |
08:18 |
Evening.
Lee back in truck driving |
LEE: Let’s go! Time now is…
what time is it now? It’s ten to nine. Let’s go. |
09:17 |
|
CARRINGTON
CLARKE, Reporter: Just before 9pm, after 14 hours on the job, Seong Wook gets
an automated message from the company. |
09:28 |
Lee
continues deliveries into night |
LEE: Ah, bloody hell!
Because of the deaths from overwork, the company banned making deliveries
after 9pm. But our current workload can’t accommodate the ban. Knowing that,
the company just sends this message to cover itself. So
what now? I still have 66 undelivered items. They include food items. Am I
meant to go home without delivering them? |
09:38 |
|
CARRINGTON
CLARKE, Reporter: Seong Wook keeps working. It’ll take at least another hour
to finish. For the fresh food he delivers after 9pm, he’ll pay penalties. |
10:13 |
|
LEE: After 9pm, the
company’s computer system shuts down. Deliveries I made after that will be
marked as ‘delivered’ tomorrow. |
10:26 |
|
Then, the company will
charge us a late fee, which is the price of the item. |
10:41 |
|
If this food item is 50,000
won, we’ll be charged 50,000 won. |
10:46 |
|
CARRINGTON
CLARKE, Reporter: That’s a fine of roughly $60, for an item he’s paid less
than $1 to deliver. |
10:51 |
|
LEE: I’ll kick the bucket myself at this rate. |
11:00 |
Lee
sitting by road, smoking |
CARRINGTON
CLARKE, Reporter: Seong Wook finally wraps up around 11pm. For a 16-hour day,
he’s earned around $180. That’s before he’s paid tax, his petrol or phone
bills, or any penalties for late deliveries. LEE: I'd be lying if I said
it isn't tough for me. |
11:09 |
Lee
interview. Lee shows photos of daughters |
But it’s a matter of
survival. My children won't eat if I don't earn. So
I endure the hardship, endure not seeing them and work hard to earn money.
Just like our fathers did. They’re always on my mind. Running towards me. |
11:42 |
|
MOTHER: These things were
already happening in society, but before we lost our son, they were never our
problems. |
12:26 |
Mountains |
They were other people’s
problems. Like gazing at a mountain from afar, we thought, 'Oh, someone died
today.' |
12:39 |
Photos.
Jang |
CARRINGTON CLARKE, Reporter: 27-year-old Jang Deok-joon returned home
from a night shift at 6am on October 12th, 2020. He went to the bathroom to
shower. When he hadn’t emerged an hour later, |
12:53 |
Deok-joon's
parents |
his father opened the door. MOTHER: My
husband found him doubled over, kneeling in the bath tub
with his hands together around his chest, grabbing his chest. The only thing
on our mind was, why didn’t we find him sooner? If we had found him a bit
sooner, we could have saved him. |
13:10 |
Coupang
fulfilment centre |
CARRINGTON CLARKE, Reporter: Deok-joon worked for the e-commerce giant
Coupang, often described as Korea’s Amazon. He worked in one of their
fulfilment centres, preparing items for delivery. Coupang manages its own
logistics and has used artificial intelligence and real-time productivity monitoring
to make its distribution chain the fastest in the business. |
13:37 |
|
MOTHER:
Coupang’s strength is so-called ‘Rocket Delivery’ where if you order
something tonight it’ll be at your door by dawn the next morning. To deliver
this kind of service there are constant deadlines. For about two hours until
the deadline is met, you go through a living hell. Meeting the deadline will
drive you into the ground. |
14:07 |
Deok-joon parents into workshop |
FATHER: After
the autopsy, I realised how skinny he was. If only I had known earlier. |
14:34 |
Father
interview |
Because of the
pandemic his work became harder. If I’d known what sort of company Coupang is I would’ve stopped him from working there. If I’d seen
how much weight he’d lost, I would’ve done everything to stop him. |
14:50 |
Mother
interview |
MOTHER: We’re in our
fifties, going on 60. All we learned was to work hard and endure hardship.
But these really clever people used their brains
only to devise ways to squeeze blood from the workers as much as possible
within the boundaries of the law. |
15:17 |
Wooden
plaques and drawings of Deok-joon in
home |
CARRINGTON
CLARKE, Reporter: Deok-joon died of a heart attack. Coupang insisted it was
not work-related., but his parents refused to accept the denial. They
travelled to fulfilment centres all over the country |
15:42 |
Parents'
van |
with
a delivery truck bearing the slogan ‘Coupang Killed My Son!’ Finally, after
months of campaigning, they received an official ruling: |
15:57 |
Parents
visit shrine |
their
son’s death was caused by overwork. |
16:10 |
|
MOTHER: There will be other
victims like my son. There will be families like us. If consumers don’t start
thinking about it there will be other victims. Do you really think it’s okay
to turn a blind eye or force someone to be sacrificed for your convenience? |
16:14 |
Father
at shrine |
|
16:52 |
|
FATHER: "I wish I
could follow you. I am sorry. I should have touched you a whole lot more. Why
don’t you come to me in my dreams anymore? Come and find me in my dreams. I
want to talk to you." |
17:00 |
Workers
arrive at fulfilment centre |
RYAN
BROWN: Our sincere condolences go to his family. They have our deepest
sympathy. You know, |
17:35 |
Brown
interview. Super: |
today
Coupang is the third-largest employer in Korea and that's about 50,000
people. And if you think about 50,000 people over the course of a year,
you're going to have any number of personal medical conditions from within
that population. |
17:51 |
|
CARRINGTON CLARKE, Reporter: : So, just be clear though, do you believe that this was
a personal medical incident or this was a work-related death, a death because
of overwork at Coupang? |
18:17 |
|
RYAN BROWN: The government
ruled this to be an industrial incident and we do accept that. The
logistics industry in Korea averages about 80 accident-related fatalities a
year. And, you know, Coupang from the start has prioritized the health and
safety of its workers. |
18:25 |
Drone
shot. Delivery van. Night. Huh drives into warehouse |
|
18:56 |
Carrington
helps Huh with parcels |
CARRINGTON: And do I keep
doing this side? HUH: Hmm? CARRINGTON: Do I keep doing
this side or should I do this side? HUH: No, that one first. CARRINGTON
CLARKE, Reporter: I’m back with Huh Won-jae, helping him sort parcels at the
distribution centre in Incheon. HUH: Carrington, you know
that I’m not getting paid for this, right? CARRINGTON: Yeah, that
seems crazy to me. HUH: No, what I’m saying is
that I, so I won’t be able to pay you. |
18:19 |
Huh
starts delivery |
CARRINGTON
CLARKE, Reporter: Won-jae never planned to be a delivery driver. He holds a
master’s degree in English and ran his own language schools in Canada and
Japan. He moved back to Korea to be close to his ageing mother, who has
early-stage dementia. Despite his qualifications and experience, he struggled
to find work. |
19:52 |
Huh
eating meal in truck while driving |
HUH: I still thought at the
time that I could get some positions in some university, because I used to
teach in universities as well. But I have to support
myself and then also I have to support my mother. She’s sort of handicapped
because of her illness. So, I visit my mum as often as possible, whenever I
can. |
20:25 |
Huh
visits mother |
HUH: Mum! MOTHER: My youngest son?
What brings you here? HUH: It’s your birthday. MOTHER: Is it today? No,
it’s not today. HUH: Mum, cake! MOTHER: You even bought me
a cake? |
21:00 |
Birthday
decorations |
HUH: Mum, you have lived
for 93 years. |
21:14 |
Huh
with mother |
You lived under the
Japanese occupation. That’s when you went to school. You experienced the
Korean War with Dad. MOTHER: Before the Korean
War… Was it before the Korean War or during the Korean War that my husband
died? HUH: When you married him? MOTHER: He had a stroke. HUH: Hmm, I think that… |
21:21 |
|
MOTHER: Although he died of
a stroke, I brought up all six children. I helped them all to establish
themselves. That’s why… people around me think highly of me. |
21:50 |
|
I’m 93 years old. It’s not
that common to reach this age, is it? HUH: That’s right. MOTHER: Do many live to be
this age? HUH: No, not many. MOTHER: Are there many who
are the same age? HUH: Her memory fades away. |
22:07 |
|
She was kind of mixed up
with her memory just now when I asked her when she married… MOTHER: [Speaking Japanese] Will it rain… or not? CARRINGTON
CLARKE, Reporter: Won-jae’s father was an activist |
22:28 |
Photo.
Huh's parents. Huh and mother look at photos. |
in
the Korean Independence Movement that fought to liberate Korea from Japanese
colonial rule. He met Won-jae’s mother in the 1940s when she was just a
teenager. |
22:52 |
|
MOTHER: He was in the army
back then. As he walked past my house, he was waiving at me, asking me to
come out. So I went out. We went to the bank of a
stream. We went there and when we reached a lamp post he suddenly kissed me. HUH: What she’s really
clearly remembering is the first moment that he kiss
her under the light of an electric pole, she’s telling… |
23:06 |
|
MOTHER: When we were under
the lamp post, he stole a kiss from me. HUH: Did you like it? MOTHER: Why do you think I
married him? |
23:32 |
Huh
unpacking wheelchair for mother |
HUH: During the colonial
period these polarisations, in terms of the controlling power, same thing is
happening even nowadays in the development of this capitalism. These
economically and politically polarised people. Maybe the whole country’s been
developing, but still in terms of the fair distribution of the assets or
human rights, not really fairly developed yet. |
23:41 |
Huh
and sister assist mother into wheelchair |
HUH: Take a seat here, Mum.
SISTER: Wait. Here. Here.
Put your legs around here. That’s it. MOTHER: I really hate it. |
24:17 |
Time-lapse.
Traffic |
Music |
24:35 |
|
CARRINGTON
CLARKE, Reporter: While we’ve been filming this story, COVID infections have
soared in South Korea to their highest level yet. |
24:44 |
Lee
driving |
As
restrictions begin to tighten once more, so does the strain on delivery
workers. LEE: COVID has increased
our workload, so it's impossible for me go home. If not for COVID, I’d go
down to see my children once or twice a month. |
24:57 |
Lee
arrives home |
But they’re still young and
I'm worried I might get infected and spread it to my family. CARRINGTON
CLARKE, Reporter: Lee Seong Wook is busier than ever. He’s a branch leader of
the Delivery Workers’ Union and has been trying to organise a protest in
honour of his colleague Im Gwang Soo, who is still in a coma. |
25:23 |
|
LEE: Currently, he’s had
one operation. His survival rate has gone up a bit from five to twenty
percent. |
25:41 |
|
That’s why we’re preparing
for a fight. A person’s life is at stake. |
25:55 |
|
Seong
Wook has brought his workmate’s truck back to his house for safekeeping. |
26:02 |
Colleague's
truck |
LEE: His truck collected a
lot of parking tickets. And there were a lot of complaints from people in the
area. That’s why I brought it to my house because I have some space for
parking. If he wakes up, he can drive his truck again. We’re waiting for a
miracle. |
26:11 |
Lee
on video call with daughters |
CARRINGTON
CLARKE, Reporter: Seong Wook is separated from his wife and lives alone. It’s
been six months since he’s hugged his daughters. |
26:34 |
|
LEE: Can you see me okay? |
26:48 |
|
DAUGHTER 1: You look
different. LEE: Because you haven’t
seen me for ages? DAUGHTER 2: I don’t think
it’s my dad. LEE: Take a closer look.
Look here. |
26:50 |
|
DAUGHTER 1: Oh no! Dad
looks squarish around the face! LEE: I look squarish? |
27:06 |
|
LEE: Korean people work
hard. They work hard. But as people keep dying, questions are asked about why
it’s happening, and people start to realise it's because of overwork. |
27:10 |
|
LEE: Na-kyung, stand up for
me. I want to see how tall you are. Wow! What about Cho-hyun? Cho-hyun is
nearly as tall. Wow! You’ve grown a lot. |
27:29 |
|
LEE: If our generation
can't change it, it’ll be passed down to the next generation and then what we
do for our children would be meaningless. |
27:43 |
|
LEE: Make sure
you wear a mask to avoid COVID-19. DAUGHTER 1:
I’ll wear 100 of them. DAUGHTER 2:
I’ll wear 10,000 of them. DAUGHTER 1:
I’ll wear 100 times 10,000 of them. DAUGHTER 2:
I’ll wear over 100 over 1000, over 10,000 and over every number of them. DAUGHTER 1:
I’ll wear that many times whatever you say. |
27:56 |
|
LEE: Korean people are
known for being hard workers. But it's all meaningless if you die. People are
beginning to see that now. |
28:15 |
|
DAUGHTER 2:
I’ll go to the earth and the moon. DAUGHTER 1:
I’ll go to the universe. DAUGHTER 2:
I’ll go past the universe, past Hawaii, past Africa and past everything. |
28:29 |
|
LEE: Bye-bye! DAUGHTERS:
Bye-bye! |
28:45 |
Credits
[see below] |
|
29:07 |
Outpoint |
|
29:37 |
Reporter
Carrington Clarke
Producers
Alex Barry
Sookyoung Lee
Camer
Mitchell Woolnough
Editors
Peter O'Donoghue
Mattew Walker
Researcher
Alison McClymont
Assistant
Editor
Tom Carr
Additional
footage
Coupang
Senior
Production Manager
Michelle Roberts
Production
Co-ordinator
Victoria
Allen
Digital
Producer
Matt Henry
Supervising
Producer
Lisa McGregor
Executive
Producer
Matthew Carney
abc.net.au/foreign
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2021 Australian Broadcasting Corporation