Listed below are types of records common to many departments, appropriate periods of minimal retention, and their ultimate disposition. For records types not listed, please consult with Lynda DeLoach. Departments should review their records schedules annually for accuracy and revise them accordingly.
A formula which assigns a value to each records series may help you determine appropriate retention periods:
For example, chronological files generally have a permanent retention:
- Administrative value (how long you need to use the records) -- 2-5 years
- Legal value -- 0 years
- Fiscal value -- 0 years
- Historical value (100+ years) -- 100+ years
Retention period = Permanent
On the other hand, employee expenses generally have a temporary retention:
- Administrative value -- 1 year
- Legal value -- 0 years
- Fiscal value -- 3 years
- Historical value -- 0 years
Retention period = 3 years
Permanent, Temporary, or Reference?
Permanent records are original records created by your department that have historical value for a minimum of 100 years beyond administrative, legal, or fiscal needs; transfer permanent records to off-site storage after a specific number of years or upon dissolution of the department.
Permanent records include:
- Correspondence ("chron") files -- incoming/outgoing correspondence; transfer off-site after two years
- Projects or events files -- records pertaining to specific projects or events; transfer off-site after they are no longer actively used
- Subject files -- central files arranged by subject; transfer off-site after two years
- Objects -- individual items (for example, awards, art, memorabilia) created for a specific campaign or event; do not transfer off-site without consulting with an archivist
Temporary records are original records created by your department that do not have permanent historical value; transfer temporary records to off-site storage after they have met administrative, legal, or fiscal needs; they will be destroyed after a specific number of years.
Reference records are duplicate (or "FYI") copies of original records created or maintained by another AFL-CIO department or outside the AFL-CIO (for example, copies of expense reports, copies of contracts, copies of leave and attendance records, copies of corporate annual reports); never transfer these records to off-site storage: once they no longer serve an administrative need, destroy them on-site.
