The Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) should include delivery workers as a priority group for COVID-19 vaccines, as many consumers rely on their services because dining out has been banned across Taiwan, the Digital Economy Association Taiwan said on Monday.
Although most delivery platforms or e-commerce providers do not have enough workers to handle the increase in orders, they still try to complete as many as possible, despite the infection risk workers face from coming into contact with so many people, the association said in a statement.
In Taipei and New Taipei City, where there are many more COVID-19 cases than in other areas in Taiwan, demand for food delivery platforms and logistics service providers is high, and delivery workers face even more risk when providing services to people in hospitals and quarantine facilities in the two municipalities, it said.
Photo: Liu Hsin-te, Taipei Times
If delivery workers are vaccinated, they can continue to work safely and are less likely to infect others, which would alleviate the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on businesses and reduce consumers’ anxiety, the association added.
California and Singapore view delivery personnel as essential workers and have included them in their vaccine priority groups, the association said.
Members of the association include Foodpanda Taiwan Co (富胖達), GoShare Taiwan Ltd (睿能數位), Lalamove Taiwan (啦啦快送), Uber Taiwan and Uber Eats Taiwan.
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