I'm a bit astonished to see such a practice at the ACLU.   I understand the
frequent "preference" for such "confidentiality" on the part of executives,
and believe that such practices are not uncommon in the private sector,
not-for-profits, and public sector entities.  I am aware of instances where
elected officials shredded documents upon leaving office (a misdemeanor, but
one that is not often enforced).

I admire the actions taken by the ACLU Records Manager, believe that they
are commendable, and hope that Records and Information Managers everywhere
will take a cue here from the actions of the Records Manager / Archivist at
the ACLU.

Doug Allen, CRM, CDIA+

-----Original Message-----
From: Records Management Program [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf
Of Jim Connelly
Sent: Monday, June 06, 2005 8:26 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Shredding

An article in the Sunday Times seems to warrant some attention.  I have
excerpted some key paragraphs.

Concerns at A.C.L.U. Over Document Shredding
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/05/national/05aclu.html?ei=5065&en=6ae08e08ba
5358
7f&ex=1118548800&partner=MYWAY&pagewanted=print  This link appears to be
working as of this AM.

The ACLU appears to have a problem in that shredders have appeared in
apparent contradiction with established practices.  The ACLU has an
archives/RM program ... policies in place and yet legal risk problems have
been placed on the back burner for the sake of convenience.  .

The question is "as a records manager what would you do ... what would you
have done"

My feeling is that managers should have discretion in destroying documents
...
copies, unneeded drafts etc.  and that listing of everything that hits the
shredder might just be overkill in this instance.  (It wouldn't be high on
my daily priority list.) Would not posting of what is in fact transitory
above the shredders be sufficient?  Should we not trust staff at some point.

If volumes of shredding are tracked by the RM staff ... should that not
point out sudden leaps in shredding in volume or sudden bouts of hoarding
documents ... both of which could be investigated by RM staff.

Comments anyone?... other than the irony of this concern being raised at the
ACLU.

Regards
Jim

Jim Connelly
St. Albert, Alberta
[log in to unmask]
1-780-460-7089

Sunday New York Times
June 5, 2005
Concerns at A.C.L.U. Over Document Shredding By STEPHANIE STROM The American
Civil Liberties Union has been shredding some documents over the repeated
objections of its records manager and in conflict with its longstanding
policies on the preservation and disposal of records.
...
Janet Linde, who oversaw the A.C.L.U.'s archives for over a decade until she
resigned last month, raised concerns in e-mail messages and memorandums for
over two years that officials' use of shredders in their offices made a
mockery of the organization's policy to supervise document destruction and
created potential legal risks.
...
The A.C.L.U. allows for document shredding but has policies for recording
what is destroyed that predate recent changes in the law, and it has
historically placed great emphasis on preserving records. Its policy lists
specific types of documents - including duplicate records and outside
publications - that can be destroyed without creating a record. For other
materials, employees are instructed to contact the archives.
...
Under the A.C.L.U.'s policy, employees deposit documents, disks and other
files slated for destruction in locked bins in their departments. They are
required to complete and sign a form next to the box, describing what they
have deposited.

A contractor collects the bins each month and shreds the contents under the
watch of an A.C.L.U. records manager, who then countersigns the sheets to
confirm the destruction.
...
So when Anthony D. Romero, the executive director of the organization,
casually mentioned to a group of employees in 2002, about a year after his
arrival, that he had a shredder in his office, they were shocked, ... Mr.
Romero was told it was a violation of policy, the former employees said, but
no one pushed the issue.
...
The organization hired Richard M. Smith, an Internet and computer security
expert, to examine its practices and offer suggestions for improvement.
Among other things, he recommended that shredders be installed in every
department to make document disposal more convenient.

In a July 2002 e-mail message to Barry Steinhardt, an A.C.L.U. lawyer who
specializes in matters of privacy, Ms. Linde objected to that
recommendation, saying that Mr. Smith seemed unaware of the organization's
document retention policy. She noted that she had asked to sit in on his
audit but had been excluded.

Employees began noticing shredders next to copiers throughout the
organization in early 2003, according to e-mails.
...
Ms. Linde wrote a memorandum voicing her concerns, so the A.C.L.U. sought
advice from the law firm that handles its real estate matters in Washington,
D.C. The firm forwarded a report that echoed many of Ms. Linde's points, and
several shredders were removed, according to memorandums.

Mr. Romero kept his shredder, as did Alma Montclair, the director of
administration and finance, according to those memorandums. Later, records
managers noted that the accounting and human resources departments had
shredders, and, more recently, that Donna McKay, the A.C.L.U.'s director of
development, had one, too.

To track what was being destroyed on those machines, the records managers
attempted to impose a system similar to the one used for the locked bins,
putting document destruction sheets next to all the shredders except Mr.
Romero's about a year ago. Employees in the departments with the shredders
signed the sheets, according to a memorandum, but rarely noted what they
were shredding. ...

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