The government and pizza delivery franchises Monday agreed rules to protect delivery staff who often drive dangerously due to fierce competition within the industry.

Triggered by the deaths of delivery drivers and protests by their colleagues, they also decided to hold safety campaigns.

The Ministry of Employment and Labor signed with Pizza Hut, Mr. Pizza and Domino’s Pizza as well as the Korean Franchise Association a memorandum of understanding on safe delivery. The industry has been dominated by competition on swift delivery guaranteeing pizza within 30 minutes.

The three companies decided to increase safety awareness by attaching safety badges, stickers and flags to delivery motorbikes. The state and the association will support the companies by providing related information and guidelines.

The launch of the campaign came as public denouncement of the pizza industry’s “delivery in 30 minutes, or it’s free,” policy grew when a 24-year-old college student died while making a delivery last December.

According to the ministry, a total of 4,962 people in the restaurant and lodging industry have been injured or killed in motorcycle accidents in the past six years.

Of them, pizzerias accounted for the greatest number ― 26.7 percent ― followed by Chinese restaurants and chicken franchises.

The study suggested that while it may be important to deliver pizza in a short time, the part timers, mostly college students, have to take serious risks to meet the 30-minute time limit.

At the end of the year, Domino’s and several other franchises scrapped the 30-minute delivery system.

“We hope the campaigns will convince customers that safe delivery is the best delivery,” said Lee Sung-ki, head of the Seoul Employment and Labor Center, an affiliate of the ministry.

By Bae Ji-sook (baejisook@heraldcorp.com)