(Yicai Global) June 8 -- Rumors that about a quarter of Meituan’s three million delivery staff have a junior college or higher degree are untrue, according to a person familiar with the Chinese food delivery giant.

Beijing-based Meituan does not know the educational backgrounds of its delivery staff and the rumored courier headcount also differ from the actual figure, the person said.

Many internet celebrities have indulged in fear-mongering by suggesting that “many food delivery workers are highly educated,” thereby advocating the devaluation of academic qualifications and the uselessness of study.

As early as 2021, a Shanghai-based online rumor-busting platform noted that the news claiming “China has a total of 7 million food delivery guys and 1 percent of them have a master’s degree or higher qualifications or diplomas” was fake.

The platform said a 2019 survey by Meituan’s research arm found that 1 percent of the 118,000 individuals polled had a master’s degree or above. But the findings cannot be generalized to Meituan food couriers or even takeout delivery staff nationwide, it noted.

Last year, more than 6.24 million delivery personnel earned income from Meituan takeaways, with the daily active number exceeding 1 million, per a report released by the firm last month.

Editors: Zhang Yushuo, Peter Thomas