Dealing with Inactive Personnel Records

[pierson777]

I'm trying to sort through a lot of inactive personnel records, but I can't identify when each one actually became inactive.  It's an absolute mess that happened when I wasn't watching the store.  I need to figure this out so that I can ensure that each one is retained for five years then destroyed on time.  Does anyone know if there's any way to determine when membership expired, transferred, retired, terminated, etc.?  Right now, all I can do make my best guess for each one.  If there were a report, then my problem would be solved.

[Checotah]

I hope you deal with your inactive personnel better than my recent experience.  I was inactive (meaning I didn't attend unit meetings but kept my membership current) for a few years.  During the interim, while records were being transferred to eServices, my entire personnel file, along with several others, was destroyed by a commander who is no longer in the program.  My records no longer reflect my time a Mission Cooridinator (now IC), Unit Commander, Group VC, Mission Pilot, MP instructor, and all the other positions I held.  Not really an issue for me, but it is an irritant.

[James Shaw]

I'm trying to sort through a lot of inactive personnel records, but I can't identify when each one actually became inactive.  It's an absolute mess that happened when I wasn't watching the store.  I need to figure this out so that I can ensure that each one is retained for five years then destroyed on time.  Does anyone know if there's any way to determine when membership expired, transferred, retired, terminated, etc.?  Right now, all I can do make my best guess for each one.  If there were a report, then my problem would be solved.

If you are the Commander or Personnel you should be able to contact NHQ and find out their inactive date. You can then write it on the outside of the record and know when to destroy.

[NIN]

I took over a unit that had a TON of files, not just personnel files, that nobody ever threw out.  Stuff going back into the 1970s ( this was 1996).

I spent over 6 months (slowly) going thru the files and putting things in their places.  A file cabinet drawer in our supply room became "inactive records storage" and I used the attached form (it was cut into individual forms, BTW) to mark each record based on date in storage, etc.

It was difficult, as the OP has noted, to ascertain the inactive date of a member, particularly members I'd never even heard of.

In the case of cadets, I'd flip open the file and look to see when the cadet's membership join date was. Say it was "October 1997." Then I'd look to see what the last dated item was in the file. Say it was a test header from June 1999.  It wasn't hard to make a logical assumption that this cadet's membership probably did not renew in October of 1999.    I would then use "October 2004" as the destruction date. 

All the files would go into the drawer ordered by the destruction date on the buck slip.  My admin officer had a task to review the destruction files every 6 months or so and to screen and destroy any records that were past their destruction date.   It was pretty easy to go into the drawer, thumb back thru the files to find the last one that fit the date criteria, pull that hunk of files and take them off to the shredder.  Slide everything forward. Fill from the back. Rinse. Repeat.

[pierson777]

If you are the Commander or Personnel you should be able to contact NHQ and find out their inactive date. You can then write it on the outside of the record and know when to destroy.
[/quote]

Yes, I'm the Personnel Officer, but I can't justify asking someone at NHQ to look up over 100 membership inactive dates.

I have a great system for handling the inactive files. As soon as a member becomes inactive (expire, terminate, transfer, etc.), I relocate their file into an "inactive" file drawer, sorting by year, then alphabetically.  After Dec 31, I destroy one year's worth of inactive records that is five years old.

I really just want to know if there's a report that shows the inactive membership dates, or if I can look it up myself.

[Eclipse]

The first step is scanning everything and ditching the paper.  You're now 1/2 way to your goal and no longer
burdened by the physical objects.

From there you can work on ascertaining the dates of the inactive members and even consider sending the scanned files
to those you can locate.

I hope you deal with your inactive personnel better than my recent experience.  I was inactive (meaning I didn't attend unit meetings but kept my membership current) for a few years.  During the interim, while records were being transferred to eServices, my entire personnel file, along with several others, was destroyed by a commander who is no longer in the program.  My records no longer reflect my time a Mission Cooridinator (now IC), Unit Commander, Group VC, Mission Pilot, MP instructor, and all the other positions I held.  Not really an issue for me, but it is an irritant.

The unit CC and Group VC CD (no Vice below Wing) can be restored to your records with an email from the Wing CC.
The others indicated aren't really relevent to anything.  If they are important to you, you can rebuild your 45 from memory
and other records and have the Unit CC sign off on it.

Your situation does emphasize a few things, though.

If it's important to you (the member), make sure you have a copy.

Anything that is really important needs to be in eServices (which is easily corrected).

its the members' ultimate responsibility to insure these files and records are correct.

As long as we're talking about it - the only thing that should be in a member's file is information relevent to CAP
service.  When I took over a unit it had decades of inactive files, not to mention active member files
that were, in some cases, 3-5 inches or more thick.  Anything that somehow could be even slightly tangentially
related to CAP, aviation, the airport the unit was at, or lunch that day was in there.  This was all ultimately
pared down and returned to the members.

These days, each member should have a single, authoritative .PDF file which contains their entire history.
This is simple to do, simple to update, and an entire wing could be stored on one flash drive (though it should
be there as the only copy).

[Eclipse]

I really just want to know if there's a report that shows the inactive membership dates, or if I can look it up myself.

Unfortunately, no. At least not accessible below NHQ.

NHQ can run custom reports for a lot of things.  I've done it myself.
If you sent them a simple spreadsheet or .CSV, they might be able to squeeze out those dates.

[jimmydeanno]

Theorectically, you could just lump them all together and put the same destruction date on them and call it a day, since the newest inactive file would set the date of destruction.  While it would be nice to pare down the stack for sake of storage, sometimes things like that just aren't worth the potentially 50 hours of labor to do it.  Just sayin'.

[MIKE]

If I were a really organized Personnel Officer, every month I would check the MML and yank the non-renewals from the active file.  Put a sticker on the records jacket with the expiration month and year as the close date and the destroy year.  I would probably log the date each is destroyed also... For when in year six when they come looking for it you can say that it was destroyed IAW CAPRs on X date.

[Eclipse]

If I were a really organized Personnel Officer, every month I would check the MML and yank the non-renewals from the active file.

OK, you're showing your age with that one.

Is there still a generatable report similar to what they used to send?

[lordmonar]

I'm trying to sort through a lot of inactive personnel records, but I can't identify when each one actually became inactive.  It's an absolute mess that happened when I wasn't watching the store.  I need to figure this out so that I can ensure that each one is retained for five years then destroyed on time.  Does anyone know if there's any way to determine when membership expired, transferred, retired, terminated, etc.?  Right now, all I can do make my best guess for each one.  If there were a report, then my problem would be solved.

"inactive" for the purposes of the personnel record is the date they transferred to another unit or the date that their membership expired.  Both of those dates can be gotten from NHQ even if the individual is not on your roster.

If the member is still in CAP...then you should send the record to the new unit commander (they should have asked you to mail it to them).

The "inactive" is not talking about if the member is inactive....but is the record inactive.

[lordmonar]

If you are the Commander or Personnel you should be able to contact NHQ and find out their inactive date. You can then write it on the outside of the record and know when to destroy.

Yes, I'm the Personnel Officer, but I can't justify asking someone at NHQ to look up over 100 membership inactive dates.

I have a great system for handling the inactive files. As soon as a member becomes inactive (expire, terminate, transfer, etc.), I relocate their file into an "inactive" file drawer, sorting by year, then alphabetically.  After Dec 31, I destroy one year's worth of inactive records that is five years old.

I really just want to know if there's a report that shows the inactive membership dates, or if I can look it up myself.

In that case.....just move them all to the inactive file on the same day and hold for five years.  It is not like the SUI team is going to have that information either.  That is usually what we do with our files.  In January....everyone who has dropped or transferred during the year gets moved to the inactive file.....we destroy the files that are now five years old and move on.  That is why the destroy date is Dec 31.....so you only have to dig out the "dead" records once a year...instead of dealing with them each month.

[pierson777]

If the member is still in CAP...then you should send the record to the new unit commander (they should have asked you to mail it to them).

The "inactive" is not talking about if the member is inactive....but is the record inactive.

Yes and No:
The files are "inactive" which refers to the status of the files themselves, not necessarily the member.  Inactive files are the old files from members that did not renew, were terminated, transferred, resigned, or retired.

In the case of a transfer, the unit is still required to still keep a copy of the member's record for five years.  Plus the member should take a copy with them to hand carry to their new unit, or it can be mailed, or even scanned and emailed.  The important part is that the unit keep a copy for five years.  Don't just pull out the folder and hand it them without first making and keeping a copy. (from R 39-2, 1-8)

[Checotah]

The unit CC and Group VC CD (no Vice below Wing)

At the time (late 80's) our Group was actually larger and more active than Wing HQ, with our own Vice Commander, Chief of Staff, Deputy Commander of Senior Programs, Deputy Commander Cadet Programs, and so forth (might not be remembering exact titles correctly).  I know this may not have been what was specified in 20-1, but it is the structure with which we worked, with full knowledge and apparent acceptance by WHQ.  There were some who called us "Southern Oregon Wing", somewhat in jest because we worked so well together (staff and all squadrons).  We supported WHQ, but just got the job done better. 

[Eclipse]

If the member is still in CAP...then you should send the record to the new unit commander (they should have asked you to mail it to them).

The "inactive" is not talking about if the member is inactive....but is the record inactive.

Yes and No:
The files are "inactive" which refers to the status of the files themselves, not necessarily the member.  Inactive files are the old files from members that did not renew, were terminated, transferred, resigned, or retired.

In the case of a transfer, the unit is still required to still keep a copy of the member's record for five years.  Plus the member should take a copy with them to hand carry to their new unit, or it can be mailed, or even scanned and emailed.  The important part is that the unit keep a copy for five years.  Don't just pull out the folder and hand it them without first making and keeping a copy. (from R 39-2, 1-8)

A unit is not required to retain any records of members who transfer. That's a "should" not a "will".

[pierson777]

A unit is not required to retain any records of members who transfer. That's a "should" not a "will".

I see the "should" that your referring to, but the same paragraph from 39-2, 1-8 has this exact Quote: "The unit is required to maintain records of former members for 5 years unless otherwise directed by Personnel and Member Actions (NHQ/DP)."  It could be argued either way, depending on the intent of the word former; former = not a member of CAP anymore or former = not a member of the unit anymore?

[Eclipse]

It really can't - the verbiage and terminology is clear in context.

Someone who transfers from one unit to another is not a "former member", they are an active member until
their national status changes.  In this case, the word "former" is in reference to their membership status, not the last place
they attended a meeting.

Consider this, if the previous unit(s) were required to retain copies of member records at the same level
of retention as "former" members, CAP would become in an exponential mountain of paper (even more then it is today).

As an example, in the last 5 years I've personally had 3 different units of record, and will likely move to a
forth here pretty soon.  Mobility like that might not be typical for the average member, but it's pretty typical
in my wing and region, and not unusual in general. Such is the nature of an understaffed, undermanned organization
with plenty of "personalities" to go around.

Also, having all those copies of my information, would be a PERSEC issue - not one I'd be overly concerned about personally,
but a legitimate part of the discussion.

The 5-year retention requirement is for when members move to a status other then "Active" or "Patron"
and then only the last unit of record retains the files.

Now, as a best practice, until you confirm receipt of the member's records by the new unit of record, it's not
a bad idea to keep a copy "just in case", and takes zero effort if they are electronic, however it's not required
and yes, you can simply hand the member his folder and move on with your day.

[pierson777]

It really can't - the verbiage and terminology is clear in context.

Someone who transfers from one unit to another is not a "former member", they are an active member until
their national status changes.  In this case, the word "former" is in reference to their membership status, not the last place
they attended a meeting.

Consider this, if the previous unit(s) were required to retain copies of member records at the same level
of retention as "former" members, CAP would become in an exponential mountain of paper (even more then it is today).

As an example, in the last 5 years I've personally had 3 different units of record, and will likely move to a
forth here pretty soon.  Mobility like that might not be typical for the average member, but it's pretty typical
in my wing and region, and not unusual in general. Such is the nature of an understaffed, undermanned organization
with plenty of "personalities" to go around.

Also, having all those copies of my information, would be a PERSEC issue - not one I'd be overly concerned about personally,
but a legitimate part of the discussion.

The 5-year retention requirement is for when members move to a status other then "Active" or "Patron"
and then only the last unit of record retains the files.

Now, as a best practice, until you confirm receipt of the member's records by the new unit of record, it's not
a bad idea to keep a copy "just in case", and takes zero effort if they are electronic, however it's not required
and yes, you can simply hand the member his folder and move on with your day.

From CAPR 10-2 Table 11. Personnel, personnel records - cutoff/then: "Cut off when membership expires or transfers and destroy after 5 years".  This leads me to believe we're supposed to keep it for five years, even if it was a transfer.

Like I said...it could be argued either way.