MOOSE JAW - T4 slips, employment records and bank statements from the 2016-17 year are some documents that Holy Trinity Catholic School Division will soon destroy as part of a regular cull of old records.
The organization securely stores thousands of documents at its board office in Moose Jaw and, in accordance with appropriate provincial legislation, policies, and records retention and disposal schedules, records and paperwork from seven years ago have reached their useful purpose and will soon see the shredder.
Division administration presented a list of payroll and finance records that will soon become history — and tiny little pieces — during the recent board meeting.
Ward Strueby, director of education, told trustees that CFO Curt Van Parys and Dave DePape, superintendent of human resources and operations, determine every year what documents should be shredded and what can be retained.
“Everything stays at the board office under lock and key,” the education director said.
It’s important to keep certain documents long-term because the division office sometimes receives calls from former students who require records from the 1960s for court purposes, Strueby continued. Such records can help former students know when they were enrolled in a Catholic school in Moose Jaw or the area.
The education director added that Holy Trinity can legally shred and destroy documents after seven years, as per legislation.
Joann Blazieko, board chairwoman, pointed out that shredding old documents is important because the board office has only so much storage space on site. Therefore, it’s necessary to eliminate paperwork that doesn’t have historical value.
Some payroll-related documents the school division will destroy include accounts payable payments, payroll batches, T4s, records of employment, board indemnity payments, sick leave records and leave requests/staff absence forms.
Some finance-related records that Holy Trinity will dispose of include journal entries, bank statements, vendor invoices, GST returns, excise tax returns, deposit books, charitable receipts and other budget documents.
The next Holy Trinity board meeting is Monday, Sept. 16.
