LONDON – Tributes were paid yesterday to legendary former trade union leader Jack Jones who died aged 96.
Mr Jones, who led the Transport and General Workers’ Union, died in London on Tuesday night, his son said. Mick Jones said his father “passed away very peacefully in a very nice care home in Peckham. He had all the care he could possibly want. He was active until the very end and had a good innings.” Mr Jones was born in Liverpool and served as general secretary of the TGWU from 1969 to 1978 when it was one of the most powerful unions in the country.
TUC general secretary Brendan Barber described him as a “true giant of the labour movement”.
He said he was “utterly dedicated to delivering respect and social justice for working people”.
“He was a passionate internationalist showing raw courage on the battlefields of the Spanish Civil War. After his working life as a trade unionist, he became a champion for pensioners, holding ministers to account without fear or favour and urging governments to deliver dignity to the elderly.
“He always saw trade unionism not as a narrow interest group but as a force for social progress, with a partnership with a labour government – for all its stresses and strains – as the best way of achieving advance.”
Mr Barber added: “His countless friends and admirers of every generation will lament his loss.”
Manus O’Riordan of Siptu and the International Brigade Memorial Trust said: “Jack had been the most outstanding British trade union leader of the postwar era. On behalf of the Irish families and friends of international brigaders, I particularly mourn Jack’s passing, not only as our IBMT president but also as a life-long friend of all members of my own family.” – (PA)