ABSTRACT
Compared to its competitors, the San Rafael factory represented an industrial powerhouse and marked a key investment and technological breakthrough in the Mexican industrial landscape. A number of indicators confirmed the positive effects of the factory on the development of the village of San Rafael compared to the rest of the region. While managers were invited to the family gatherings and celebrations of workers, they had to remain the main enforcers of rigour and discipline in the workplace. Before the factory was built, forests and water were goods that belonged to the community, under the jurisdiction of the municipality. On the workers' side, informants reported a gradual decline in morale and increased sabotage, strikes and absenteeism covered up by colleagues and the trade union. In San Rafael, the influence of the director-general went beyond the sphere of labour and social protection or welfare.
