Jones worked from the age of 13, initially repairing boots, then as a coal miner in Derbyshire. In 1918, he transferred to Rossington Colliery in southern Yorkshire, where he became active in the Yorkshire Miners' Association (YMA). He was elected to Doncaster Rural District Council for the Labour Party in 1924, then as checkweighman in 1926, and to the West Riding of Yorkshire County Council in 1928.^[1]

In 1939, Jones won election as general secretary of the YMA, and for part of World War II he served as Regional Labour Director for the Ministry of Fuel and Power. In 1950, he became Vice-President of the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), and also gained a seat on the General Council of the Trades Union Congress. In 1954, he was elected President of the NUM, serving until his retirement in 1960. He was also Secretary of the Miners' International Federation from 1957 to 1960. In retirement, he served on the National Savings Committee. In 1961, he was appointed a CBE.^[1]