A deliveryman of Shunfeng Express sorts parcels on Monday. Photo: cnsphoto

A total of 36 working staff members have been included in a professional rank evaluation system in Wuhan, Central China's Hubei Province, in the express delivery industry for the first time. The move became an instant talking point among Chinese netizens, as express delivery men have played an important role amid the epidemic outbreak.

For the first time, express delivery engineering, as a subject major, was included in the engineering series preliminary evaluation system, filling the gap in the professional rank evaluation of the working staff in the logistics industry in Wuhan, according to a notice posted on the official website of the Wuhan Municipal Postal Administration on Monday. 

As of press time, the topic was viewed more than 32 million times on Sina Weibo, China's Twitter like social media platform. Express delivery networks and information were also included in this industry, and the move "will benefit the industrial specialized development and personal career," one user commented.

Some users asked if the system would help in an income hike for workers in the industry, as they are really hard-working.

Many traditional careers face huge challenges with the rapid development of technological innovation; however, the emerging industries such as express delivery-related jobs are very promising, Jing Linbo, director of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences Evaluation Studies, told the Global Times on Tuesday, noting that the evaluation system creates incentives. 

It will have a demonstration effect on other emerging industries across the nation, Jing said, noting that the move opened gates for further discussions on issues like welfare improvement.  

Some 12.5 billion parcels were delivered in the first quarter of 2020, up 3.2 percent year-on-year, according to the State Post Bureau, despite the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak.

This is not the country's first attempt to provide better career development for working staff in the express delivery industry. In October 2019, Beijing announced to add a professional rank evaluation system for workers in the express delivery industry, which includes five levels: technician, assistant engineer, engineer, senior engineer and senior chief engineer, according to media reports.