Does a member have a right to know the membership rolls?

[Phil D]

A rank-and-file member has asked to see a list of all members of our organization (a union chapter). 

Presume bylaws and constitution are silent on the issue. Relevant procedural law requires that candidates for officer positions have equal access to members for purposes of campaigning, but our parent organization has largely taken to relaying campaign materials to members, rather than disclosing the membership list to candidates. In any event, the member making the request here is not seeking such a position. 

Does any particular provision of RONR require disclosure of the full membership rolls to any individual member upon request?

[Rob Elsman]

This request to inspect the membership roll does not involve parliamentary procedure having to do with the transaction of business during a business meeting.

[Atul Kapur]

That doesn't mean that RONR is silent. It specifies, as one of the Duties of the secretary, 47:33(4)

"To make the minutes and records available to members upon request (see 47:36)."

However, it is an interesting question whether the membership roll, which is also in the secretary's custody (47:33(3)) is to be considered a "record" for the purpose of (4).

47:36 says

Quote

Any member has a right to examine these reports [written reports received from boards or committees (47:35)] and the record book(s) referred to in 47:33(8), including the minutes of an executive session, at a reasonable time and place, but this privilege must not be abused to the annoyance of the secretary.

and 47:33(8) specifies the content of the record book(s)

Quote

To maintain record book(s) in which the bylaws, special rules of order, standing rules, and minutes are entered, with any amendments to these documents properly recorded, and to have the current record book(s) on hand at every meeting.

So members have rights to examine the record books. Does that include the membership roll?

I'm inclined to say Yes, but am keen to hear from others.

And, because you mention that you are a union, you are well advised to review applicable statute, which would include statute that applies to unions as well as that which applies to corporations if you are incorporated. [Thanks to @Richard Brown for the reminder].

Edited August 23, 2022 at 01:54 AM by Atul Kapur
added underlined words

[Richard Brown]

On 8/22/2022 at 7:22 PM, Atul Kapur said:

So members have rights to examine the record books. Does that include the membership roll?

I'm inclined to say Yes, but am keen to hear from others.

I am inclined to say yes as well, but I do see how there could perhaps be a different interpretation. There’s also a chance that state law or the national union might have a provision in the matter. If the local union is Incorporated, I believe some nonprofit corporation statutes give the members the right to inspect certain records of the corporation.

[Phil D]

I appreciate the direction to citations. Helpful. I incline in the opposite direction since those sections do not explicitly reference certain specific records by type (bylaws, RoO, standing rules, minutes, and committee reports) but not the membership rolls themselves. I had not thought to look through statutes on non-profits as potentially responsive to the issue. I’ll look into that. 
 

I’ll concede some bias on the point since, to the extent we have discretion, the member-elected government wants to deny the request. And there are some concerns around maintaining the secrecy of members (or at least not collating them into a readily reproducible list), as members may worry about retaliation from management where other deliberative bodies probably don’t have similar concerns. That of course wouldn’t alter the content of RONR or relevant statutes, but just to provide some perspective as to why we would decline if we have discretions 

[Josh Martin]

On 8/22/2022 at 2:49 PM, Phil D said:

Does any particular provision of RONR require disclosure of the full membership rolls to any individual member upon request?

No. The organization is free to adopt its own rules on this matter if it wishes.

I concur with Mr. Brown that given the nature of the organization, it is very possible there are applicable laws on this subject.

On 8/22/2022 at 5:22 PM, Atul Kapur said:

So members have rights to examine the record books. Does that include the membership roll?

I'm inclined to say Yes, but am keen to hear from others.

In my view, the membership roll is not included in the "record books" that are available for inspection by members. RONR says the following pertaining to the "record books."

"To maintain record book(s) in which the bylaws, special rules of order, standing rules, and minutes are entered, with any amendments to these documents properly recorded, and to have the current record book(s) on hand at every meeting." RONR (12th ed.) 47:33 (8)

"When written reports are received from boards or committees, the secretary records on them the date they were received and what further action was taken on them, and preserves them among his records. It is not necessary for an assembly to vote that a board or committee report be “placed on file,” as that is done without a vote.

Any member has a right to examine these reports and the record book(s) referred to in 47:33(8), including the minutes of an executive session, at a reasonable time and place, but this privilege must not be abused to the annoyance of the secretary." RONR (12th ed.) 47:35-36

So it seems to me that no rule in RONR gives members a right to view the membership roll. The rule in question provides that members have a right to review reports of boards and committees, and also the record book(s) referred to in 47:33 (8). That rule refers to "the bylaws, special rules of order, standing rules, and minutes." So it seems to me the rule intends that it be limited to the documents specifically mentioned, and that it does not include other records kept by the Secretary, such as the membership roll.

An organization certainly may adopt rules providing that the membership roll (or perhaps a partially redacted version thereof) shall be available to members upon request if it wishes to do so, but it does not seem to me that any rule in RONR requires it.

Edited August 23, 2022 at 02:29 PM by Josh Martin

[Richard Brown]

On 8/23/2022 at 9:27 AM, Josh Martin said:

In my view, the membership roll is not included in the "record books" that are available for inspection by members. RONR says the following pertaining to the "record books."

I respectfully disagree. Section 47:33 (3) requires the secretary to keep and maintain the official membership roll of the organization. Section 47:33 (8) regarding the “record book(s)“ of the organization  does not limit the record book or books to those items mentioned in subparagraph (8). In my opinion, the membership roll of the organization is, almost of necessity and by definition part of the record books of the assembly that should be open to inspection by members.

I do agree, however, that RONR is not crystal clear on that point and that reasonable minds might differ as to the interpretation.

Edited to add:  section 47:33 (4) requires the secretary to make the records of the organization available to inspection by the members. I think the membership roll is almost by definition such a record. Here is the language of 47:33 (4):  “To make the minutes and records available to members upon request (see 47:36).”

Edited August 23, 2022 at 02:53 PM by Richard Brown
Added last paragraph

[Shmuel Gerber]

On 8/23/2022 at 10:48 AM, Richard Brown said:

Here is the language of 47:33 (4):  “To make the minutes and records available to members upon request (see 47:36).”

The rule in 47:36, which this rule refers to, is obviously the more specific rule in comparison to the rule in 47:33, and therefore takes precedence. 

But I agree that some more clarity in these rules could help. 

Edited August 23, 2022 at 03:21 PM by Shmuel Gerber
Inserted the underlined words

[Atul Kapur]

On 8/22/2022 at 8:22 PM, Atul Kapur said:

So members have rights to examine the record books. Does that include the membership roll?

I'm inclined to say Yes, but am keen to hear from others.

I'm glad to have heard from others. I agree with Mr. Gerber that the strong implication of the quoted paragraphs, read together, is that the membership roll is not part of the "record books" as it was not specifically listed in 47:33(8). (Mr. Gerber would likely use a stronger term than strong implication.) 

However, the reason that I was inclined to say Yes is that, to be able to fully exercise one's freedom of association, one should have the ability to know who one is associating with.

[AFS1970]

Not that I am any kind of legal expert, but it seems to me that the membership roll, while maintained by the secretary, is not part of the record books. The books have a listed content in RONR and the membership roll is not among that list. The list is not prefaced by any language that says including or not limited to, so a plain reading is that the list is limited. In my organization, there would be a loophole, in that part of our minutes is the meeting attendance, and the form we use is a sign in sheet, which is a membership list that we sign our names to next to our printed name. There is no contact information, but the list of names is there. 

[Rob Elsman]

In those organizations that use the roll call vote, the membership roll can be inspected by inspecting the minutes.

[Shmuel Gerber]

On 8/25/2022 at 9:48 AM, Rob Elsman said:

In those organizations that use the roll call vote, the membership roll can be inspected by inspecting the minutes.

But the full roll does not need to be entered in the minutes; if members are absent they are not necessarily included. 

[Rob Elsman]

I think I was of the opinion that a roll call vote would include all the names called, including the names of those who were absent or chose not to make any response.

[Rob Elsman]

And, I had a clear (mis?)understanding that one of the purposes of having a roll call vote was to memorialize the vote of each member in the minutes.

[Shmuel Gerber]

"In roll-call voting, a record of how each member voted, as well as the result of the vote, is entered in full in the journal or minutes. If those responding to the roll call do not total a sufficient number to constitute a quorum, the chair must direct the secretary to enter the names of enough members who are present but not voting to reflect the attendance of a quorum during the vote." (45:52)

"When the voting is by roll call, the names of those voting on each side and those answering “present,” as well as the total number in each category, are entered. If members who are present fail to respond on a roll-call vote, enough of their names must be recorded as present to reflect that a quorum was present at the time of the vote. If the chair voted, no special mention of this fact is made in the minutes." (48:5(2)(c))

Some organizations might include the entire roll, including the names of absent members, but RONR does not say to do that. 

[Phil D]

Regarding the impact of state statutes or relevant labor law, I did inquire of our parent organization's general counsel and peruse the statutes myself. I don't think there's anything compelling us to disclose the full membership list merely because a member asks. 

 

On 8/23/2022 at 12:01 PM, Atul Kapur said:

However, the reason that I was inclined to say Yes is that, to be able to fully exercise one's freedom of association, one should have the ability to know who one is associating with.

I agree that this is an important interest. For many assemblies that depend on RONR, there's probably not a major countervailing interest. For us, though, there are worries about retaliation against members. Giving out a list of members merely because a member asks for it creates the possibility of that list being published more broadly.

I seem to recall that RONR refers, at least in passing, to the practices of "secret societies" in some section or other, suggesting that the use of RONR by secret societies is contemplated. I have to imagine that secret societies aren't readily publishing their member lists to the rank-and-file. A union is not exactly a secret society, of course, but it's perhaps a little more concerned about protecting the privacy of members than some other organizations. 

[Atul Kapur]

On 8/27/2022 at 10:49 PM, Phil D said:

For us, though, there are worries about retaliation against members.

Unless this union is not yet certified, doesn't the employer already know who all the unionized members are?

An alternative viewpoint is that withholding this information from a member makes it easier for the current leadership to maintain its position because they can more easily communicate with the membership than any "rebel" faction.

But this is getting beyond RONR, so to bring it back:

I don't believe that 'secret societies' are keeping secrets from themselves but from non-members (but I wouldn't know - it's a secret).

[Gary Novosielski]

On 8/28/2022 at 2:15 AM, Atul Kapur said:

Unless this union is not yet certified, doesn't the employer already know who all the unionized members are?

An alternative viewpoint is that withholding this information from a member makes it easier for the current leadership to maintain its position because they can more easily communicate with the membership than any "rebel" faction.

But this is getting beyond RONR, so to bring it back:

I don't believe that 'secret societies' are keeping secrets from themselves but from non-members (but I wouldn't know - it's a secret).

The payroll department probably does know who's who, if dues are deducted from the paycheck.

As for members, they might like to know who their fellow members are, while those who, where possible, choose not to join the union would probably not like this fact to be known by their fellow workers. 

But somebody has to be able to ensure that only members are allowed to attend meetings, participate in debate, and vote. If the membership rolls are generally available to members, this task is made easier.

 

[Rob Elsman]

Well, nothing in RONR (12th ed.) limits a society's holding social mixers, receptions for new members, holiday parties, or other ways for members to get acquainted and to network.  Similarly, nothing limits members from associating and getting to know one another in public or private settings outside the context of the society.  If the real purpose of wanting to inspect the membership roll is to know with whom you are associating, I would submit that there are many other and better ways to do that.

[Josh Martin]

On 8/27/2022 at 9:49 PM, Phil D said:

I seem to recall that RONR refers, at least in passing, to the practices of "secret societies" in some section or other, suggesting that the use of RONR by secret societies is contemplated. I have to imagine that secret societies aren't readily publishing their member lists to the rank-and-file.

I have no personal knowledge of the practices of secret societies, but for what it is worth, what little RONR says on this matter is found in the following rules.

"The practice of organizations operating under the lodge system is equivalent to holding all regular meetings in executive session." RONR (12th ed.) 9:24

"In some organizations—particularly secret societies—the use of black and white balls, deposited in a box out of sight of all but the voter, with a white ball signifying a yes vote and a black one a no vote, may be directed as a method of balloting. This method is used principally on voting on the admission of candidates to membership where one or very few negative votes are to be sufficient to cause a candidate’s rejection. This custom, however, is apparently declining." RONR (12th ed.) 45:18n3

"In most societies it is usual to elect the officers from among the members; but in all except secret societies, unless the bylaws provide otherwise, it is possible for an organization to choose its officers from outside its membership." RONR (12th ed.) 47:2

On 8/27/2022 at 9:49 PM, Phil D said:

I agree that this is an important interest. For many assemblies that depend on RONR, there's probably not a major countervailing interest. For us, though, there are worries about retaliation against members. Giving out a list of members merely because a member asks for it creates the possibility of that list being published more broadly.

I have no personal opinion on what the union's rules on this matter should be, but I do think it would be advisable for the union to consider this question and adopt its own rules regulating whether members may have access to the membership roll and, if so, under what circumstances and what regulations are in place governing its use. This would have the benefit of ensuring that the rules on this matter are known to all members and uniformly applied, rather than being based solely upon the discretion of the officers or board. Leaving no written rules in place on this subject may (rightly or wrongly) lead to allegations of unfair and disparate treatment in regard to such requests.

Edited August 29, 2022 at 12:07 AM by Josh Martin