South Korea police launch investigation into delivery worker's death

South Korea police are investigating a delivery worker death following the discovery a note detailing grievances about work conditions. 

File Photo by Keizo Mori/UPI | License Photo

Oct. 21 (UPI) -- South Korean authorities are investigating the death of a delivery driver who left behind a note detailing unfair contract terms with his company.

The probe follows a statement of concern from President Moon Jae-in on the status of essential workers amid COVID-19.

Gyeongnam Provincial Police Agency said Wednesday it is assembling a team of 14 detectives to probe the driver's death and verify the note, Yonhap reported.

The death of the unidentified driver has been ruled a suicide, according to local press reports. The man's death comes after at least 11 delivery workers across the country have been found dead since the pandemic. Overwork leading to exhaustion and illness has been cited as the cause for many deaths.

The note left in the case of the latest driver, who worked for local logistics company Logen, was found Tuesday. The note began with the words, "I have been wronged," according to local television network KBS.

The note included grievances toward Logen. According to the written statement, the company required the driver to pay up front a security deposit and also pay a premium for the right to deliver packages in an area of Busan, South Korea's second-biggest city. The note went on to say those payments reduced his salary.

Kim In-bong, secretary general of a national logistics workers union, told KBS the security deposits are a common feature of contracts with top logistics companies, including CJ Logistics. CJ Logistics is part of CJ Group, one of the country's biggest conglomerates.

The company is to issue a formal apology on Thursday, according to lawmakers visiting a CJ logistics center on Wednesday, Yonhap reported.

Workers under contract with CJ Logistics have recently died, including a man in his late 40s with the surname Kim, on Oct. 8. Another CJ employee in his late 30s was found dead at his residence on Oct. 12, according to the report.

"COVID-19 is increasingly pushing the livelihoods of workers within economic blind spots, including those of special-employment type workers, towards the brink," Moon said Tuesday.