Documenting Labor Inside and Out
Internal Documents
Financial Records
While charters, constitutions, by-laws, and minute books provide a solid footing for
understanding the history of a labor organization, other administrative records are also
informative. Items such as a treasurer's report or a proposed budget can provide
information on how a union or local spends the dues it receives from its members as
well as its overall financial condition. The financial condition of a union or a
local can be crucial. If a union is financially vulnerable, or if a local is highly
dependent on its parent union for financial solvency, it may appear weak in the eyes
of both management and those it represents. As a result, its effectiveness as a
bargaining agent may be seriously undermined.
The records of the Columbia County Typographical Union No. 896
held in the Archives of Public Affairs and Policy include a
variety of financial reports--such
as audit reports and annual financial statements--made by that local to the International
Typographical Union. Not only do these reports provide information about the financial
condition of the Columbia County Typographical Union, the Audit Report also includes
valuable information regarding the size of that union's membership.
In addition, these financial records suggest the control that the International Typographical Union (ITU) exerted over its locals. Smaller locals may at times experience difficulties in the administrative aspects of union operations, being required to comply with both state and national labor laws as well as the regulations of its parent union. In the case of the Columbia County Typographical Union, the solution to these administrative hassles was to merge with the Albany Typographical Union No. 4 in 1966. In doing so, it was following the advice of the ITU, which, recognizing the difficulties being experienced by smaller locals, had recommended that they consolidate their forces (and hence administrative operations).
Even more detailed financial records exist in other collections
held in the Archives of Public Affairs and Policy,
and provide valuable information to
researchers interested in the day-to-day operation of a labor organization. The pages
from the Day Book maintained by the Hudson Valley District Council of Carpenters
Local 574 for 1919-1921 not only list individual members of the local and the amount of dues
they paid, but also record expenditures for the automobile and pallbearers for the funeral
of a member, for the initiation fees for members transferring to other locals,
and for a delegate from the local to attend a convention in Buffalo. Every page of the Day
Book provides useful information about Local 574, the services it provided to its
members, and its activities beyond the Hudson Valley.
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