THE GEORGE MEANY MEMORIAL ARCHIVES

Trade Unionists

Please click here for information about the AFL-CIO records management program.

Local union officers function in a wide variety of settings, from the fully-staffed union office that serves thousands of members to the corner of a home office, but all face similar questions about how to manage the records used to administer the local. Each asks in her/his own way, "What do I do with my files?"

 What is records management?

Records management is a tool that ensures the efficient and accurate creation, use, maintenance, and disposition of your records.

 Why should I care about records?

Managing records according to a plan:

• Is efficient (you can find what you need when you need it)
• Saves money (papers that are no longer needed regularly can be moved out of expensive office space)
• Improves accuracy (you know where to put a letter and where to find it)
• Protects the benefits and rights of members (there are legal and ethical reasons for local union officers to maintain certain types of records)
• Preserves the heritage of your local (the history of the local helps the future of the local in the same way that knowing about our parents and grandparents helps us understand our families)

 What kinds of records should I care about?

Most unions create similar kinds of records. Some are only useful for a short period of time; some need to be kept for a set period of time; and some should be kept permanently.

 What kinds of records can I destroy after only a short time?

• Housekeeping records (out of date manuals, out of date equipment records, etc.)

 What kinds of records do I need to destroy according to a set schedule?

• Records required for reporting (some state and federal agencies require that certain types of records be retained for specific time periods; your international union may also have similar requirements)
• Financial records (cancelled checks, receipts, bills)
• Reference files (reference files contain information the office gathers to assist in program efforts; for example, publications and clippings)

 What kinds of records should I retain permanently?

• Founding documents (charter, constitution, bylaws, jursidiction)
• Minutes of meetings (local, council, executive board)
• Membership records
• Records relating to collective bargaining (contracts, minutes of collective bargaining meetings, grievance and arbitration files)
• Pension records
• Legal actions
• Personnel records
• Correspondence (relating to records listed above, and general)
• Accounting records (annual and monthly financial reports, annual audits, account ledgers)
• Publications (official record copies of the organization's publications, like newsletters, newspapers, pamphlets, brochures)
• Oral histories, sound recordings, films, and videotapes (those created by the union; not those created by others)
• Photographs and artifacts (photo negatives, posters, placards, flyers, badges, buttons, and other artifacts created and used by the union as part of its program efforts)

 This sounds too complicated. How do I know what to throw away and when I can do it?

First, have a filing system -- not file piles:

• The key to timely retrieval and cost efficiency is a single, simple, and logical filing system
• File records according to who created the records or according to the reason for which they were created
• File official records separately from reference files

Second, know the difference between active records and inactive records:

• Active records are those you need regularly; they need to be maintained in the office and be readily accessible
• Inactive records are those you never or rarely use

Third, keep your files manageable:

• Do not keep magazines, journals, books, or newspapers published by others
• Do not file duplicates
• Do not file routine materials, like letters of transmittal, form letters, rough drafts, phone messages, and cover letters
• File records each day to avoid a backlog
• Date your records

Fourth, conduct a survey of your records and establish retention and disposition schedules for them:

• This allows you to compile information about your records and ensures an orderly flow of records from creation to disposition

Finally, consult How to Keep Union Records: A Guide for Local Union Officers and Staff by Debra Bernhardt (edited by GMMA staff and published by the George Meany Center for Labor Studies in 1992); the guide should be used in conjunction with advice and guidelines provided by international unions and by legal and financial counsel. To request a photocopy or PDF version of the manual, please contact Sarah Springer. [TOP]