What the Seesaw Wage Dispute Means for Specialty Coffee

Seesaw, a specialty coffee chain, has been accused of owing wages to roughly 75 employees in the Shanghai region, including store staff and back-office workers. Former employees say pay became irregular from late last year, with social security and housing fund contributions deducted but not paid. Founder Wu Xiaomei has left their demands read but unanswered, and the company's national store count has fallen to 49 locations.

The reported trouble extends beyond payroll. Some stores have closed because of material shortages and supply disruptions, and staff numbers at affected shops dropped from six to two or three as colleagues resigned over unpaid wages. The case has drawn attention within coffee culture circles because Seesaw was long seen as a pioneer of China's specialty coffee scene, making its contraction a notable signal for the sector.

Recently, the coffee brand Seesaw was exposed for allegedly owing wages to about 75 employees in the Shanghai region, involving both store staff and back-office personnel. Former employees reported that since late last year, wage payments have been irregular, and social security and housing fund contributions have been suspended. Founder Wu Xiaomei has left employees' demands "read but unanswered." Meanwhile, Seesaw's national store count has shrunk significantly, leaving only 49 locations, with some stores closing due to material shortages and supply disruptions. This article reviews the sequence of events and employees' experiences, while retaining relevant recommendations from Front Street Coffee.

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Recently, former Seesaw employees tipped off the media, claiming that about 75 employees in the Shanghai region have not been paid their wages.

According to reports, a former employee who worked at Seesaw for two years and left in February this year revealed that when she joined in 2022, the company promised compensation consisting of a base salary, bonuses, and morning/evening shift allowances, paid on time monthly with full social insurance and housing fund benefits. However, starting late last year, salary payments gradually changed, "Monthly wages were split into two payments: 50% on payday and the remaining 50% a week later. The final payment for last December was delayed until February this year before being settled."

Due to irregular wage payments, the employee said that before she left, the number of staff at the store had dropped from six over two years to two or three, "All resignations were due to wage issues," and "For those who came to Shanghai from other provinces to work, cut-off wages meant cutting off their livelihood." Even more frustratingly, the company continued deducting social insurance and housing fund fees from wages each month but did not actually pay them. "After I left, because my social insurance wasn't canceled, I couldn't join a new company, and the gap in coverage remains unresolved to this day."

According to this employee, based on her understanding, about 75 employees in Seesaw's Shanghai region have been owed wages, including both store staff and back-office personnel. Two other Seesaw employees also confirmed this account.

(The image shows part of a chat log from a Seesaw employee group regarding wage payments.)

One of the employees, a back-office staff member, said that since July last year, back-office salaries shifted from "monthly settlement" to three installments, with each payment ratio being 35%, 35%, and 30%, respectively. Although this worker's October salary last year was originally scheduled for payment the following month, by the end of February this year, he still had not received 30% of his October wages, and his November salary was also in arrears.

The employee shared his salary card transaction details, stating that the last time he received wages was on December 29, 2024, which was the second installment for October 2024. He is now owed a cumulative total of 50,000 yuan in wages and performance bonuses. Regarding the "gap in coverage," the employee was helpless, "It wasn't until September when I saw a colleague's post online that I learned the company had stopped paying social insurance in June, and I had received no prior notice."

Multiple employees told reporters that since May 2024, their housing fund contributions were interrupted, and from July to September last year, social insurance payments were gradually suspended, with the company still not specifying a repayment timeline. Some employees said the company is currently in a state of "no one to contact" disorder. Although the labor inspection department responded that it "will assist in urging payment," progress has been slow. Employees have also tried multiple times to contact Seesaw founder Wu Xiaomei, but messages were all "read but unanswered," and public phone numbers have been unreachable for a long time.

In response, reporters called multiple Seesaw stores in Shanghai to further verify the situation. Some employees said they were part-time and unaware of the wage arrears, while others explicitly declined to be interviewed.

In addition to suspected wage arrears, Seesaw has accelerated its store closures over the past year. The official mini-program shows that as of now, Seesaw has only 49 stores nationwide, with 2 marked as "temporarily closed," one of which is on the first floor of a hotel in Shenzhen. Reporters learned from the hotel that this store has recently not been operating, and it is unclear whether it has completely withdrawn or is temporarily restructuring.

The manager of a Seesaw store in Beijing told reporters that due to material shortages and supply disruptions, his store's cup output declined and business became sluggish. Eventually, unable to hold on, the store closed recently, forcing him to resign. He said he is now owed over 10,000 yuan in wages by Seesaw, plus compensation totaling about 30,000 yuan.

Regarding the wage arrears and mass store closures, reporters contacted a Seesaw responsible person to verify the situation. After learning of the reporters' interview request, the person did not respond in any way. At the same time, reporters tried again to contact Seesaw through multiple channels but received no response.

Image source: Online screenshot

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The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.