[1] Born in Paisley Raised in Neilston, Paul O'Kane attended St Luke's High School in Barrhead, where he was Head Boy.

After graduating from university in 2010, O'Kane worked as a Development Officer with Volunteer Centre East Dunbartonshire.

Prior to his election to the Scottish Parliament, he worked for seven years with ENABLE Scotland, a major learning disability charity and social care provider, leaving the role of Policy and Participation Manager upon his election to Parliament.

O'Kane worked as a parliamentary researcher to two Scottish Labour MPs, Jim Murphy (2007–10) and Gemma Doyle (2012–13).

[1] On 6 April 2015, he was chased down a street in Barrhead by a man with a chainsaw while campaigning for Jim Murphy in the 2015 general election.