Chinese-Run Online Grocer Weee's String of Cases: $865,000 Massachusetts Settlement, $95,000 D.C. Settlement, and a California Class Action Alleging Withheld Tips
Weee, the online Asian supermarket widely used by Chinese consumers in North America, has faced a string of labor lawsuits and regulatory settlements in recent years: in August 2025 it reached a settlement of more than $865,000 with the Massachusetts attorney general; in August 2026 it settled with the District of Columbia attorney general for $95,000; and in California, a class action by delivery drivers accusing the company of withholding tips and misclassifying drivers remains pending.
Weee is an online-only supermarket that describes itself as "America's Largest Online Asian Supermarket." It is a California company whose operating entities include Weee! Inc., Weee! Logistics LLC and Weee! OD Foods LLC, with Min Liu as president.
In Massachusetts, Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell's office announced on August 5, 2025, that Weee had misclassified its delivery drivers as independent contractors, depriving them of employee protections, failed to let workers earn and use sick time as required by the Earned Sick Time Law, and failed to provide paystubs. The settlement of more than $865,000 includes restitution for more than 160 affected drivers and penalties, and Weee agreed to classify its Massachusetts drivers as employees. The investigation began with a complaint referral from the Chinese Progressive Association. Drivers who delivered for Weee between 2021 and 2024 may be entitled to payments and can contact the Attorney General's Fair Labor Division at [email protected] to check.
In Washington, D.C., Attorney General Brian Schwalb announced in August 2026 that Weee agreed to pay $95,000 — $47,500 in restitution to misclassified drivers and $47,500 in penalties to the District — and to reclassify its delivery drivers as employees. The District alleged that since 2022 the company had misclassified at least 95 drivers, who were denied paid sick leave and split-shift pay; eligible current and former drivers will be contacted by a claims administrator within 90 days. In the settlement agreement, Weee denied the allegations and maintained that it has complied with District wage-and-hour laws.
In California, delivery drivers Yi "Sunny" Song and Xiangyang "James" Ji filed a class action on March 23, 2023, through the law firm Sanford Heisler, on behalf of hourly delivery drivers in California dating back to March 4, 2018. The complaint alleges that Weee withheld portions of drivers' tip compensation despite telling customers that 100% of tips go to drivers, misclassified drivers, deprived them of meal and rest breaks, retaliated against drivers who complained, and exposed drivers to hazardous materials such as dry ice without training or safety equipment, in violation of California labor and workplace-safety laws. The case, brought in part under California's Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA), seeks a jury trial and remains pending; the allegations have yet to be adjudicated.
Separately, Weee suffered a consumer data breach in February 2023, after which customers brought a class action in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York (Jia v. Weee!). In February 2025, the judge dismissed the case without prejudice for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction, leaving the plaintiffs free to refile.
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：亚洲超市冷藏货架（资料图）。来源：Wikimedia Commons，CC BY-SA 4.0
