In Shanghai, China, waiting in line on someone else’s behalf became paid work. A 2011 WBEZ report followed professional queuer Li Qicai as he waited at a hospital to collect traditional Chinese medicine for a customer, then moved to another queue to pay. The client could spend the intervening hours elsewhere and return when needed, effectively purchasing someone else’s waiting time.
A queue is usually a way to serve people in arrival order. Once a place can be entrusted to another person, however, the line also becomes a labor market. The patient who needs medicine, the client who wants to save time and the worker who earns money by waiting are linked by a single turn.