Half of food couriers from ethnic minority groups experience discrimination in Hong Kong, survey finds
- Study by Lingnan University interviewed 106 food delivery workers, with 89 per cent of respondents from ethnic minority groups
- Respondent says he was called ‘dirty’ and described as being a source of diseases
Around half of food delivery couriers from ethnic minority groups have said they experienced discrimination while working in Hong Kong, a poll has found, with one respondent telling the survey he was described as “dirty” and a cause of diseases.
The study, which was released by Lingnan University on Friday, interviewed 106 food delivery workers. Some 89 per cent of respondents were from ethnic minority groups, with 50 per cent saying they had encountered discrimination. Most were of Pakistani or Indian origins.
The interviewees also told researchers they had been subject to “racially aggressive acts”, which ranged from body language to swearing, as well as belittling and humiliating them.
Peter*, a survey respondent who asked to stay anonymous, said the racial discrimination had escalated during the coronavirus pandemic, citing instances of pedestrians refusing to stand next to him or using Cantonese to call him “dirty” and a source of viruses.
“I was delivering this order to one building, and there is a family – wife, husband, and two kids. As soon as they saw me, he shouted to the children ‘Get away, get away. The disease is coming and it’s dirty’,” said Peter, who has worked for a food delivery platform for about a year.
“I actually felt very sad. I don’t even know how to describe that feeling. It’s like I am not the one who has a disease or whatsoever
“Even though I have a mask and everything, they are so scared. So is it really the disease or is it because I am from an ethnic minority?”
