Born in Boroughbridge, then in the West Riding of Yorkshire, Stott began working at the age of fifteen, as a goods clerk for the North Eastern Railway.
In 1900, Stott was promoted to work at the District Managers' Office in York; while there, he joined the Railway Clerks' Association (RCA).
His manager disapproved of this and, when Stott refused to leave the union, he was transferred to a small town.
[2] In 1909, Stott was appointed as the full-time Assistant Secretary of the RCA, serving in this office for many years.
However, he retired from all his posts in 1940, spending the remainder of World War II on the Advisory Council on Reserved Occupations.