TWU Seeks WorkSafe Investigation Into HungryPanda Rider Safety After Melbourne Death

MELBOURNE, VICTORIA, AUSTRALIA — The Transport Workers’ Union called on WorkSafe to investigate HungryPanda’s rider-safety arrangements on 9 November 2026, following delivery rider Jianming Feng’s death in Melbourne on 6 November. The new occupational-safety development is the union’s request for regulatory scrutiny, rather than a newly occurring fatality.

Union seeks risk assessments and answers on reported penalties

The TWU says it wants examination of whether risks to riders were adequately assessed and controlled. It also seeks investigation of worker reports about penalties for lost or stolen orders, and says it will request risk assessments and support plans from the platform. These are union allegations and requests; no WorkSafe finding establishing a breach was retrieved.

HungryPanda disputes an automatic charging policy

ABC News reports that HungryPanda denies an automatic policy requiring riders to pay for stolen food. The company says riders should not put themselves at risk to protect orders or equipment, and describes financial and practical support for Feng’s family. ABC also reports criminal charges following the fatal incident; those proceedings do not determine the platform’s occupational-safety compliance.

HSE Blog Analysis

The practical management issue is whether payment, loss-reporting and performance arrangements support a worker’s decision to disengage from danger. A written instruction to prioritise safety needs to be consistent with the consequences workers expect when an order is stolen or a delivery cannot be completed.

A useful review would compare the stated policy with how a rider reports a threatening encounter, obtains help and challenges a disputed deduction. That is an editorial question for platform operations, not a finding that a particular policy caused this death. Assessing controls as they operate in practice and assigning responsibility within a safety management system provide related background.

Sources and verification

Read the TWU’s dated original statement, ABC’s reporting including HungryPanda’s response, Human Resources Director and WorkSafe’s existing gig-worker guidance. The National Tribune reproduces the TWU statement and is not independent corroboration. Four substantive organisations were checked, below the preferred five to six; the guidance is background, not a new investigation announcement. Source images were checked but reuse rights were not verified. The featured image is conceptual.