Chris:

I believe that if you state in your retention schedule that Job Fact Sheets
are converted to electronic form at (state the time period after which the
documents are converted and list the policy and procedures)...... then have
the proper policy and procedures by which they were converted available for
inspection, there should be no problem.

There are many people on this listserve that will add more specific info.

On 6/27/07, C G <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
> I live in Ontario and wonder if anyone on this list may be able to
> help clarify this records question for me.
>
> A co-worker has asked whether electronic copies of "job fact sheets"
> constitute legal  substitutes for the paper hard copies.
>
> I reviewed various labor-relations Acts but none are so specific. So
> far as I can tell, the only one that is relevant is the Electronic
> Commerce Act which simply confirms that the use of electronic
> documents rather than paper documents does not in itself affect the
> legal validity of the record (sections 7, 8 and 12 are especially
> relevant in this instance, which I've summarized at the end of this
> message).
>
> I am prepared  to tell her it is an office policy decision. From my
> standpoint, an electronic copy is a record. The real question is, what
> is considered the official record? If her office deems that certain of
> its electronic versions are the official ones, then so be it.
>
> The second question is, what are the risks? If asked to produce it in
> a court of law, the electronic copy could be argued to have been
> manipulated. As such, best practice would be to ensure that the "last
> modified" information was captured by the electronic document somehow.
> Further, the office should be able to point to a policy document that
> states that this will be the manner in which they treat job fact
> sheets.
>
> I'd appreciate any comments or feedback you might have to ensure all
> our  bases are covered.
>
> Cheers,
>
> Chris
>
> * * *
> Electronic Commerce Act
>
> When the legal requirement is for a specified  non–electronic form,
> the electronic equivalent is acceptable  if it is organized in the
> same or substantially the same way.  (Section 7)
>
> When the legal requirement is that an original  document be provided,
> retained or examined, the electronic  equivalent is acceptable if the
> integrity of the information is preserved. The degree of confidence in
> its integrity will depend on the use to which the information is to be
> put. (Section 8)
>
> When the legal requirement is to retain a  document, whether written
> or electronic, an electronic version  may be retained if it is
> accurate and is available to the same  extent as the original document
> and for the same length of time.  (Section 12)
>
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