On September 13, during the Harbin Marathon in Heilongjiang, a large number of university student volunteers were arranged to stand guard for free at race supply stations on a bridge in heavy rain, maintaining supply tables and squatting on the ground to seek shelter from the rain. Volunteers on-site revealed that it was entirely unpaid volunteer service, with no compensation, receiving only bread, sausages, and milk as brunch.
On September 12, a recruitment notice for Harbin Marathon security staff appeared online, requiring work from 5 p.m. that afternoon until 2 p.m. the next day, about 21 hours in total. The employer offered only 160 yuan salary plus a 20 yuan meal allowance, and demanded applicants provide their own food, lodging, tents and other equipment, and spend the night on the street. Some members in the recruitment group questioned the mismatch between workload and pay, and netizens in the comments criticized it as low‑human‑rights exploitation, saying “less than nine yuan per hour.” This notice has sparked attention and controversy over the labor system for security at large events.