Editor’s Note: The third session of the 13th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and the third session of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC) started in Beijing on 21 and 22 May 2020 respectively.

The OUC News Network will continue to publicise and report deputies and members to the two sessions who are leaders, teachers, and students of the organisation system of the Open University of China (OUC), along with their suggestions and motions in the column “Two Sessions Deputies and Members from the OUC.” Through this column we hope to manifest the spirit of the OUC in this current era and its missions and responsibilities, to establish university’s place in society, to encourage teachers and students to strive for excellence, and to create a mighty force for the reform and development of open education.

Introduction to the deputy

Chai Shanshan comes from Laohekou in Hubei Province. He was a student of Administrative Management at the Shanghai Branch of the Open University of China (OUC) in 2016 and now serves as an officer receiving and dispatching parcels and post at the Central Bureau of Shanghai Post District, China Post Group Corporation. He is also a deputy to the 15th Shanghai People's Congress and the 13th National People's Congress.

Profile of the deputy

As a post-1985 generation deputy, Chai Shanshan is one of the youngest among all delegates. As an ordinary officer receiving and dispatching parcels in the Central Bureau of Shanghai Post District, he has been working hard on the frontline of the postal system since he came to work in Shanghai from Hubei Province 15 years ago. Chai Shanshan has to process more than 10,000 bags of mail on a daily basis and this work has helped him grow from an average migrant worker to a backbone young professional.

Chai Shanshan was very busy during the annual two sessions and for a time he was called "the most popular courier" by other people.

During an interview with the Worker's Daily, Chai Shanshan's mobile phone kept ringing, many of which were calls made from media for interview invitations.

Chai Shanshan is a migrant worker deputy from the grass-roots level. During this year's two sessions, his name appeared in the list of hot search terms on Weibo and he became the target of media attention.

In 2004, Chai Shanshan came to Shanghai from Laohekou City, Hubei Province, and became a mail forwarder delivering parcels within the postal system. “At that time, delivery people in the express delivery industry did nearly everything by hand. The largest number of packages I have carried in a single day is 10,000 bags.” Over the past 15 years, Chai Shanshan has witnessed the rapid development of China's express delivery industry.

With the rapid development of China's express delivery industry, express couriers have become one of the most common service groups. Chai Shanshan got the chance to show off his talents in 2011 when the Shanghai Post Branch held a business training competition. Chai Shanshan, working hard in a one m2 wide sorting centre, managed to remember more than 2,600 place names and quickly drew a map of national railway lines. Although a handheld terminal was available for Chan Shanshan to check the names, he insisted that “I can't lose my basic skills.”

Today, the income of many migrant workers has increased, and they have mastered different skills. As one of these migrant workers, Chai Shanshan is eager to get more training and further improve his ability. “I want to create a different life for myself in this big city, one that no longer relies purely on physical strength,” he said.

After he was elected as deputy to the National People's Congress, Chai Shanshan often went to the grass-roots level for investigation. At this year's two sessions, he made a proposal entitled “Suggestions for the Better Integration of Rural Migrant Workers into the Express Delivery Industry in Cities.”

“The express delivery and take-out food industries generally adopt one of two operation models, direct operation or franchise. There are great differences in the two models in terms of treatment and protection of couriers at the end of service chain." According to Chai Shanshan, under the franchise operation model, it is difficult to protect the rights and interests of couriers.

The problems faced by express delivery couriers, such as high labour intensity, long working hours, lack of social welfare, and lacking of respect from other members of society, deeply concern Chai Shanshan.

In Chai Shanshan's view, his position as a delegate shows that the government and society is paying more attention to frontline workers like couriers. He hopes that he and his fellow workers will have “great opportunities” in the future.

By OUC News Network, integrating reports from Workers' Daily and Shanghai Education TV