American Factory Documentary Worksheet (Netflix)

This product is a close examination of the excellent documentary, American Factory, which is currently available on Netflix. This multi-part assignment is broken into 6 separate worksheets and is meant to be taught over the course of a full week. This assignment is a great way for students to learn about unions, corporations, business, and culture. This product also includes a very short pre-reading assignment which defines unions and gives some brief background information.

The premise of this film is: In Dayton, Ohio, the former GM factory has been shuttered for years. The Chinese Auto Glass manufacturer, Fuyao, sees an opportunity and buys the GM factory with plans to covert it into their largest North American auto glass factory. Initially Dayton feels optimistic about the changes and sudden need for employment. However, when factory workers feel their rights are being violated, talk of union intervention comes to a head. This film explores both the benefits and the drawbacks of unions as well as the consideration big corporations have to make between worker satisfaction and profitability. This film does a great job at presenting a relatively unbiased interpretation of unions and workers rights in America. It is also an excellent film to explore the cultural differences between the United States and China.