With the rapid growth of the application of industrial robots in China's manufacturing enterprises, it is signifi cant to explore whether the application of industrial robots has negative impacts on labor relations in the manufacturing industry, or contributes to improving the governance of labor relations and providing high-quality employment for the high-quality development of the economy under the trend of technological progress in the automation of manufacturing robots. This study, employing the data from the China Employer-Employee Survey to set up the labor relations index system, analyzes the impacts of the application of industrial robots on labor relations and employment quality. The study shows that the application of industrial robots contributes to setting up harmonious labor relations in manufacturing enterprises, meanwhile the conclusion is still tenable in view of its endogenous nature; in addition, the workers' income level of enterprises is relatively higher, with smaller internal income gap within the enterprise, improved social insurance of the employees, and the higher employment satisfaction of workers.