Paper short abstract:

Protected by an Act of Parliament, Harris Tweed can only be handwoven at home in the Outer Hebrides. Considering fluctuations in the industry, this paper explores how workers' biographies and everyday work experiences can illuminate diverse visions of a 'good life' in contexts of labour uncertainty.

Paper long abstract:

Harris Tweed is the only cloth in the world protected by an Act of Parliament (1993). This legislation establishes that, in order to be certified and stamped with the 'Orb' trademark, a cloth needs to be 'handwoven by the islanders at their homes in the Outer Hebrides, finished in the Outer Hebrides, and made from pure virgin wool dyed and spun in the Outer Hebrides'. Harris Tweed is exported to over 50 countries, trademark protected in over 30.

In a region threatened by depopulation and with a long history of employment uncertainty, the Harris Tweed industry has provided valuable work opportunities for several generations. However, shifts in global demand for the cloth have also made this industry periodically vulnerable, its history marked by fluctuations between peaks and slumps that have shaped, in turn, the creation and loss (and subsequent creation) of local jobs at different moments in the past.

Today, acceptance of these possibilities remains an intrinsic part of employment in this industry, importantly shaping workers' everyday experiences and long-term expectations. In this context, it is worth considering the multiplicity of biographies, experiences, and aspirations described by workers, and the ways in which concepts like 'flexibility' and 'self-fulfillment' are variously defined and deployed. In this paper I examine the relationship between workers' personal narratives, work routines, and ideas of what 'a life worth leading' looks like, exploring how these tensions between 'modes of temporality' may provide more nuanced understandings of working lives in contexts of moderate uncertainty and labour 'flexibility'.