In “American Factory”, Chinese money and Ohioan workers collide

By S.K. | WASHINGTON, DC

WHAT MAKES a factory American? A captivating new documentary—directed by Steven Bognar and Julia Reichert, and produced by Barack and Michelle Obama—opens with an unambiguous case. In Dayton, Ohio, a large General Motors plant had employed 2,000 workers assembling SUVs. It closed in 2008, leaving behind a shell of a building and a local unemployment rate that peaked in 2009 at 12.5%.

The factory that opened in its place was supposed to be American too, despite its Chinese owner. The film follows Cao Dewang, chairman of Fuyao group, a Chinese glass manufacturer, as he prowls his new plant, and advises contractors against putting Chinese pictures on the walls. (“When in Rome, do as the Romans do...” he says. “Don’t upset them.”) He brings in Americans to fill senior management positions. He even invites Sherrod Brown, an Ohio senator, to speak at the building’s opening ceremony.

But tensions within the partnership quickly emerge. The American workers feel underappreciated, while their Chinese supervisors are reminded that they need praise: “Donkeys like to be touched in the direction their hair grows,” a management coach says, “otherwise, they kick you”. The Americans are accused of having fat fingers, of being slow and of being afraid of heat. Mr Cao is hostile towards the efforts of some employees to unionise, threatening to close the plant altogether if they succeed.

The clashes might leave some viewers with the impression that the plant is not very American at all. When profits disappoint, Mr Cao ousts the American managers and replaces them with Chinese ones. Shawnea Rosser, an employee, remembers earning $29 an hour “and some change” at the GM plant; at Fuyao she earns $12.84. Complaints mount as Chinese management prioritises speed over safety, much to the distress of the injured workers and a rattled inspector from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

But when a group of workers from Ohio visit one of Fuyao’s outposts in China, “American Factory” draws a different contrast. The American visitors watch with bemusement as a team of Chinese workers number off, military-style, and yell out in unison their ethos of “improvement”, plus a reminder that “to stand still is to move back!” They look on in horror as Chinese workers sort large shards of glass without safety goggles or cut-resistant gloves. The Americans’ eight days off a month (ie, weekends) and eight-hour shifts are dismissed as an easy life. Life in the Fuyao plant in Ohio may not generate the same fond memories as the defunct GM one did, but the gap between them pales in comparison to the gulf between the two Fuyao factories now.

Viewers can decide themselves whether they think the Fuyao factory in Ohio is truly American—or they can revel in the film’s complexity and conclude that there is no right answer. Each side of the partnership relies on the other: the workers in the plant depend on Chinese investment for their jobs, while Mr Cao relies on their productivity for his profit margins. He explains to his employees that the plant is supposed to change the way America views China. If it fails to do that, perhaps it could change the way some Americans see themselves.

“American Factory” is available on Netflix from August 21st