Reflecting Michael Burawoy’s labor process and factory regime theory and its influence on Chinese labor studies

Michael Burawoy’s labor process and factory regime theory have been landmark contributions to labor studies and Marxist sociology, substantially influencing Chinese labor studies. This article, however, offers a critical reflection on his theory, as a genuine salute to his life as a Marxist and his contributions to labor studies. We argue that the core of labor regime theory is a striking epistemological paradox rooted in two mutually reinforcing tendencies: (1) labor regime without labor process in the production sphere, and (2) labor process without labor as class subject. The conditions for class formation are thus perpetually suspended in labor regime theory, especially when applied in Chinese labor studies. We propose that Chinese labor scholars’ praxis is not to dismiss the issue of class but to uncover the conditions of its becoming, and to elucidate the dynamic tension between class in itself and class for itself.