Author(s)

Ziyi Li ¹, Wenjia Zhang ¹, Yihe Lu ¹

Affiliation(s)

¹ School of Law, Southwest Minzu University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, 610041, China

Corresponding Author

Ziyi Li

ABSTRACT

With the continuous development of the digital economy, the scale of dedicated food delivery riders has expanded rapidly, but the issue of protecting their right to rest has become increasingly prominent. Based on empirical data from factor analysis of 136 judicial cases, in-depth interviews with 21 riders, and 6 station managers, this study identifies a platform algorithm management model comprising an algorithmic order-dispatching mechanism, an algorithmic incentive mechanism, and an algorithmic indirect management mechanism for dedicated stations. It analyzes how this model contributes to the difficulties in protecting riders' rest rights. Aiming at the two major dilemmas—"self-exploitation" caused by algorithmic management and the burden of proof in disputes due to the "algorithmic black box"—this paper proposes solutions: constructing a "counter-algorithm" protection mechanism and requiring platforms to disclose algorithmic decision dimensions and weights. These measures aim to better safeguard the rest rights of dedicated food delivery riders as new-form employees in the digital economy.

KEYWORDS

Workers in New Employment Forms; Right to Rest; Empirical Research; Platform Economy; Algorithms

CITE THIS PAPER

Ziyi Li, Wenjia Zhang, Yihe Lu, Empirical Study on the Protection of Rest Rights for Dedicated Food Delivery Riders under Algorithmic Control. Social Security and Administration Management (2025) Vol. 6: 65-74. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.23977/socsam.2025.060109.

REFERENCES

[1] Sun Ping. Food-delivery workers in the platform economy of China. Shanghai: East China Normal University Press; 2024.
[2] Guiding Opinions of the State Administration for Market Regulation, the National Cyberspace Administration of China, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, the Ministry of Commerce, and the All-China Federation of Trade Unions on Implementing the Responsibilities of Online Food Delivery Platforms and Effectively Safeguarding the Rights and Interests of Food Delivery Workers; Available from :https://www.samr.gov.cnhtml; [Accessed 20th Mar 2025]
[3] Ke Meng (2025). An Analysis of the Impacts of Algorithmic Technology on Labor Rights in the Context of Digitalization. Science Decision Making, (02), 152–162.
[4] The Supreme People's Court of the People's Republic of China ,Interpretation (III) of the Supreme People's Court on Several Issues Concerning the Application of Law in the Trial of Labor Dispute Cases, Available from:http://gongbao.court.gov.cn/Details/6bf593c3bef2e7b9a723b1343130e4.html,[Accessed 21st Mar 2025]
[5] Zhao Yanping, & Wang Yaoqiang. (2024). Theoretical Justification and Optimization Pathways for Restricting Platform Algorithmic Power through Digital Rights. South China Finance, (8), 51-60.

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