He helped others, and the union too
THE GREAT desire of Jim Knox, who has died aged 47, was to help others, not in a grand but a small, personal way. That’s why he came into journalism and entered the fold of the NUJ.
Jim worked at the local level, writing for the Local News in Glasgow. He wrote articles and gave advice that would make a difference to individuals and communities.
He was Secretary of the NUJ Glasgow branch and a member of the union’s Equality and Ethics Councils. He lived by a strong moral code — that and putting the world to rights in the pub along the way.
It was typical that, when he first became ill with cancer, he was more concerned about missing a meeting than about his condition.
As the Scottish TUC’s representative for the Unions Into Schools Programme he was helping the next generation to understand just how important it is to be part of a union, fighting for our rights. It was a role he felt passionately about.
His work for the Employment Tribunal Service and the Citizens Advice Bureau helped many disadvantaged Scots to win their rights. He never gave up and was still helping others right to the end, despite his illness.
I told him to take it easy, but he just shrugged those big shoulders and told me he had to get on with it.
James Doherty