Transformation Paths of Overseas Labor Governance in Chinese Manufacturing Enterprises from the Perspective of Institutional Distance: A Case Study of Fuyao Glass America

Abstract

This study examines the transformation of overseas labor governance in Chinese manufacturing enterprises from the perspective of institutional distance, employing Fuyao Glass America as a longitudinal single case. Drawing on publicly available corporate materials, U.S. institutional records, labor-relations documents, media coverage, relevant academic studies, and contextual materials, the study analyzes how regulatory, normative, and cognitive dimensions of institutional distance shaped labor governance practices at the Moraine, Ohio plant. The findings reveal that differences in occupational safety governance, working-time arrangements, employee representation, employee voice, managerial authority, and procedural expectations emerged from the dynamic interaction of these three institutional dimensions. Institutional distance influenced governance adaptation through four key mechanisms: institutional recognition lag, insufficient localization of home-country management practices, cross-cultural communication divergence, and limited local institutional embeddedness. These mechanisms collectively increased cross-institutional operating pressure, labor-management coordination requirements, compliance optimization needs, and organizational adjustment costs. Based on the case analysis, the study proposes a staged transformation path progressing from post-entry adjustment and initial management transfer toward prior institutional identification, selective localization, participatory governance, bilateral institutional learning, balanced performance evaluation, and stakeholder engagement. The study extends institutional-distance theory to the domain of overseas labor governance and highlights that the long-term competitiveness of Chinese manufacturing enterprises depends not only on production efficiency and cost control but also on compliance alignment, employee participation, and institutional embeddedness in the host country.