While a lot of what you say is true, I think a big factor which isn't overlooked but under accounted for is the worker wage/culture situation. Employee relation

While a lot of what you say is true, I think a big factor which isn't overlooked but under accounted for is the worker wage/culture situation. Employee relations get much easier when employees don't have much else choice. As a counter point, it felt like the engineering talent is still from European countries - note that the plant manager is European, and the machinery they use in the factory is again by a European company. So the upper management that you say moved to finance is still in the industry. Another reason I think is what some sibling comments of yours have pointed out - lax rules and willingness to co-operate with tech advancement (at the risk of environmental degradation)