lm-20_instructions_2021_edits

Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 22 minutes per response, including the time for
reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing
the collection of information. Persons are not required to respond to the collection of information unless it displays a valid OMB
control number. Reporting of this information is mandatory and is required by the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act
of 1959 , as amended (LMRDA), for the purpose of public disclosure. As this is public information, there are no assurances of
confidentiality. If you have any comments regarding this estimate or any other aspect of this information collection, including
suggestions for reducing this burden, please send them to the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Labor-Management Standards,
Room N-5609, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20210.

DO NOT SEND YOUR COMPLETED FORM LM-20 TO THE ABOVE ADDRESS.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR FORM LM-20
AGREEMENT AND ACTIVITIES
REPORT
A “direct or indirect party” to an agreement or
arrangement includes (1) persons who have secured the
services of another or of others in connection with an
agreement or arrangement of the type referred to in
Section 203(b) of the LMRDA, and (2) persons who have
undertaken activities at the behest of another or of others
with knowledge or reason to believe that they are
undertaken as a result of an agreement or arrangement
between an employer and any other person. However,
bona fide regular officers, supervisors, or employees of
an employer are exempt from this reporting requirement
to the extent that the services they undertook to perform
were undertaken as such bona fide regular officers,
supervisors, or employees of their employer.

GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS
I. WHY FILE
The Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of
1959, as amended (LMRDA), requires public disclosure
of agreements or arrangements made between any
person, including labor relations consultants and other
individuals and organizations, and an employer to
undertake certain activities concerning employees or
labor organizations. Pursuant to Section 203(b) of the
LMRDA, every person who undertakes any such
activities under an agreement or arrangement with an
employer must file a detailed report with the Secretary of
Labor. The Secretary, under the authority of the LMRDA,
has prescribed the filing of the Agreement and Activities
Report, Form LM-20, to satisfy this reporting
requirement.

NOTE: Selected definitions from the LMRDA follow
these instructions.
III. WHAT MUST BE REPORTED

These reporting requirements of the LMRDA and of the
regulations and forms issued under the Act only relate to
the disclosure of specific agreements, arrangements,
and/or activities. The reporting requirements do not
address whether such agreements, arrangements, or
activities are lawful or unlawful. The fact that a particular
agreement, arrangement or activity is or is not required
to be reported does or does not indicate whether it is or
is not subject to any legal prohibition.

The information required to be reported on Form LM-20,
as set forth in the form and the instructions below,
includes (1) the party or parties to the agreement or
arrangement, (2) the object and terms and conditions of
the agreement or arrangement, and (3) the activities
performed or to be performed pursuant to the agreement
or arrangement.
Any person required to file Form LM-20 must also file
Form LM-21, Receipts and Disbursements Report. You
must file Form LM-21 for each fiscal year during which
you made or received payments as a result of any
agreement or arrangement described in Form LM-20.
You must file Form LM-21 within 90 days after the end of
your fiscal year.

II. WHO MUST FILE
Any person who, as a direct or indirect party to any
agreement or arrangement with an employer,
undertakes, pursuant to the agreement or arrangement,
any activity of the type described in Section 203(b) of the
LMRDA must file a Form LM-20. A “person” is defined by
the LMRDA Section 3(d) to include, among others, labor
relations consultants and other individuals and
organizations. A person “undertakes” activities not only
when he/she performs the activity but also when he/she
agrees to perform the activity or to have them performed.

NOTE: A separate Form LM-20 must be filed for each
agreement or arrangement the filer makes with an
employer to undertake any activity of the type set forth in
LMRDA Section 203(b).

1

IV. WHO MUST SIGN THE REPORT

The reporting individual(s), and the reporting
organization if any, are also subject to civil prosecution
for violations of the filing requirements. According
toSection 210 of the LMRDA, “whenever it shall appear
that any person has violated or is about to violate any of
the provisions of this title, the Secretary may bring a
civil action for such relief (including injunctions) as may
be appropriate.”

Both the president and the treasurer, or the
corresponding principal officers, of the reporting
organization must sign the completed Form LM-20. A
report from a sole proprietor or an individual on his/her
own behalf need only bear one signature.
V. WHEN TO FILE

IX. RECORDKEEPING

Each person who has entered into any agreement or
arrangement to undertake activities described in the
form and instructions must file the report within 30 days
after entering into such agreement or arrangement. You
must file any changes to the information reported in
Form LM-20 (excluding matters related to Item 11.c.) in
a report clearly marked “Amended Report” within 30
days of the change.

The individual(s) required to file Form LM-20 are
responsible for maintaining records which will provide in
sufficient detail the information and data necessary to
verify the accuracy and completeness of the report. You
must retain the records for at least 5 years after the
date you filed the report. You must retain any record
necessary to verify, explain, or clarify the report,
including, but not limited to vouchers, worksheets,
receipts, and applicable resolutions.

VI. HOW TO FILE
The Form LM-20 must be completed and submitted
electronically via the Office of Labor-Management
Standards (OLMS) Electronic Forms System (EFS),
available on the OLMS website at www.dol.gov/olms. If
you must file an amended report, follow the prompts
within EFS.

X. COMPLETING FORM LM-20
Read the instructions carefully before completing Form
LM- 20.
The Form LM-20 must be completed and submitted
electronically. You may click on the “Validate” button at
any time to check for errors. This action will generate
an “Errors Page” listing any errors that will need to be
corrected before you will be able to sign the form.
Clicking on the signature lines will also perform the
validation function.

NOTE: Upon registering with OLMS, the signatories and
preparers must enter the email addresses they use to
conduct consultant business, in order to file the form via
the OLMS Electronic Forms System. While the email
addresses will not appear on the report, OLMS may use
the email address of the signatories and any preparers
to contact the consultant concerning LMRDA
compliance.

FILE NUMBER, PERSON FILING (ITEMS 1 – 5)

If you have difficulty navigating the software, or have
questions about its functions and features, call the
OLMS Help Desk at: (866) 401-1109. For questions
concerning the reporting requirements, please send an
e-mail to [email protected] or call (202) 693-0123.

1. FILE NUMBER—The software will enter the fivedigit file number assigned by OLMS for the reporting
individual or organization here and at the top of each
page of Form LM-20. If the number is incorrect or you
do not have the number on file, and you have
previously filed a Form LM-20, you can review a past
report to obtain your file number. Please visit the OLMS
Online Public Disclosure Room and select
“View Other Reports”. You will have the option to
select your consultant's name or organization from
the drop-down menu. This menu contains all the
individuals and organizations that have filed labor
relations consultant reports.

VII. PUBLIC DISCLOSURE
Pursuant to the LMRDA, the U.S. Department of Labor
is required to make all submitted reports available for
public inspection. Reports may be viewed and
downloaded from the OLMS Website at
www.unionreports.gov. For assistance, please email
[email protected] or call (202) 693-0123.
VIII. RESPONSIBILITIES AND PENALTIES
The individual(s) required to sign Form LM-20, are
personally responsible for its filing and accuracy. Under
the LMRDA, these individuals are subject to criminal
penalties for willful failure to file a required report and/or
for false reporting. False reporting includes making any
false statement or misrepresentation of a material fact
while knowing it to be false, or for knowingly failing to
disclose a material fact in a required report or in the
information required to be contained in it or in any
information required to be submitted with it.

If you cannot obtain your file number from past reports,
the number can be obtained at www.unionreports.gov,
emailing OLMS at [email protected], or calling
OLMS at (202) 693-0123.
2. NAME AND MAILING ADDRESS— Enter the full
legal name of the reporting individual or organization, a
trade or commercial name, if applicable (such as a d/b/a
or “doing business as” name), the name and title of the
2

person to whom mail should be directed, and the
complete address where mail should be sent and
received, including any building and room number.

the LMRDA contains no provision exempting the
activities protected by that section from the reporting
requirements. Therefore, activities of the type set forth in
Section 203(b) of the LMRDA must be reported
regardless of whether they are protected by Section 8(c)
of the National Labor Relations Act, as amended
(NLRA).

3. OTHER ADDRESSES WHERE RECORDS ARE
AVAILABLE—If you maintain any of the records
necessary to verify this report at an address different
from the address listed in Item 2, enter the appropriate
name and address in Item 3.

NOTE: The text of NLRA Section 8(c) is set forth
following these instructions.

4. DATE OF FISCAL YEAR END—Enter the month
and day on which the fiscal year ends for the reporting
individual or organization.

NATURE OF AGREEMENT OR ARRANGEMENT
(ITEMS 6 – 10)

5. TYPE OF PERSON—If the person reporting is an
individual, partnership or corporation, so indicate. If
none of the choices apply, enter OTHER and specify.

6. FULL NAME AND ADDRESS OF EMPLOYER—Enter
the full legal name of the employer with whom you made
the agreement or arrangement, a trade or commercial
name, if applicable (such as a d/b/a or “doing business as”
name), the name of the person to whom mail should be
directed, and the complete address where mail should be
sent and received, including any building and room
number.

GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR AGREEMENTS,
ARRANGEMENTS, AND ACTIVITIES
You must file a separate report for each agreement or
arrangement made with an employer to where the
object is, directly or indirectly:
(1) To persuade employees to exercise or not
to exercise, or to persuade them as to the
manner of exercising, the right to organize
and bargain collectively through
representatives of their choice. (Excluded are
agreements or arrangements that cover
services relating exclusively to: (1) advising
the employer; (2) representing the employer
before any court, administrative agency, or
tribunal of arbitration, and (3) engaging in
collective bargaining on the employer’s behalf
with respect to wages, hours, or other terms
or conditions of employment or the negotiation
of any agreement or any questions arising
under the agreement.)

7. DATE OF AGREEMENT OR ARRANGEMENT—Enter
the month, day and year you entered into the agreement
or arrangement.
8. NAMES OF PERSONS THROUGH WHOM MADE—
Enter the name of each person who participated for the
employer in making the arrangement or agreement,
whether that person is an individual employer, partner,
corporate officer, employee, or other person acting for the
employer.
9. OBJECT OF ACTIVITIES—Check the appropriate
box(es) indicating whether the object or purpose of the
agreement or arrangement is to, directly or indirectly,
persuade employees as to exercising their bargaining
rights or to supply an employer with information related to
a labor dispute. You must check either one or both of the
boxes.

or
To supply the employer with information
concerning activities of employees or a labor
organization in connection with a labor
dispute involving such employer.
(Excluded are agreements or arrangements
that covers services relating exclusively to
supplying the employer with information for
use only in conjunction with an administrative,
arbitral, or judicial proceeding.)

10. TERMS AND CONDITIONS—Provide a detailed
explanation of the terms and conditions of the agreement
or arrangement. If any agreement or arrangement is in
whole or in part contained in a written contract,
memorandum, letter, or other written instrument, or has
been otherwise wholly or partially to writing, you must
refer to that document and attach a copy of the writing to
this report.

NOTE: The exclusions set forth above are applicable
only to an agreement or arrangement which covers
no activities reportable under LMRDA Section 203(b).
If the agreement or arrangement provides for any
reportable activity, you must report the information
required for the entire agreement or arrangement.
While Section 203 of the LMRDA does not amend or
modify the rights protected by Section 8(c) of the
National Labor Relations Act, as amended (NLRA),

SPECIFIC ACTIVITIES TO BE PERFORMED
(ITEMS 11-12)
11. DESCRIPTION OF ACTIVITIES—For each activity to
be performed, give a detailed explanation of the following:
11.a. Nature of Activity. Describe the nature of the activity
to be performed. For example, if the object of the activity is
to persuade the employees of Employer X to vote “no” on a
representation election, so state.
3

11.b. Duration of Performance. Describe the period
during which the activity will be performed. For example,
if the performance will begin in June 2003 and terminate
in August 2003, so indicate by stating, “June 2003 –
August 2003”.

SELECTED DEFINITIONS AND RELATED PROVISIONS
OF THE LABOR-MANAGEMENT REPORTING AND
DISCLOSURE ACT OF 1959, AS AMENDED (LMRDA)
Section 3.
(a) ‘Commerce’ means trade, traffic, commerce,
transportation, transmission, or communication among the
several States or between any State and any place outside
thereof.

11.c. Extent of Performance Indicate the extent to which
the activity has been performed. For example, you
should indicate whether the activity is pending, ongoing,
or near completion, or has been completed,.

(b) ‘State’ includes any State of the United States, the
District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands,
American Samoa, Guam, Wake Island, the Canal Zone, and
Outer Continental Shelf’ Lands defined in the Outer
Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C.1331-1343).

11.d. Name(s) and Address(es) of person(s) through
whom the activity was performed. Enter the full legal
name(s) and address(es) of the person(s) through
whom the activity is to be or has been performed.
12.SUBJECT GROUPS OF EMPLOYEES AND/OR
LABOR ORGANIZATIONS—Identify the subject
groups of employees and/or labor organizations are to
be persuaded or concerning whose activities
information is to be supplied to the employer.

(c) "Industry affecting commerce' means any activity,
business or industry in commerce or in which a labor dispute
could hinder or obstruct commerce or the free flow of
commerce an includes any activity or Industry 'affecting
commerce' within the meaning of the Labor-Management
Relations Act, 1947, as amended or the Railway Labor Act,
as amended.

12.a. Identify the subject groups of employee(s).
12.b. Identify the subject labor organization(s).

(d) "Person' includes one or more individuals, labor
organizations, partnerships, associations, corporations,
legal representatives, mutual companies, joint-stock
companies, trusts, unincorporated organization, trustees,
trustees in cases under Title 11 of the United States
Code, or receivers.

SIGNATURES
13-14. SIGNATURES—The completed Form LM-20,
which is filed with OLMS, must be signed
electronically by both the president and treasurer, or
corresponding principal officers, of the reporting
organization. A report from an individual or a sole
proprietor, on his/her own behalf, need only bear one
signature which you should enter in Item 13.
Otherwise, this report must bear two (2) signatures. If
the report is from an organization and is signed by an
officer other than the president and/or treasurer, so
indicate by entering the correct title in the title field
next to the signature. Then you must Save and
revalidate the form. Once the form has passed
validation, then you must click to sign the report.
Electronically submitted forms must be signed using a
PIN and password combination. To electronically sign
the form, click the signature spaces provided. Enter
the date the report was signed and the telephone
number at which the signatories conduct official
business; you do not have to report a private, unlisted
telephone number.

(e) ‘Employer’ means any employer or any group or
association of employers engaged in an industry affecting
commerce (1) which is, with respect to employees engaged
in an industry affecting commerce, an employer within the
meaning of any law of the United States relating to the
employment of any employees or (2) which may deal with
any labor organization concerning grievances, labor
disputes, wages, rates of pay, hours of employment, or
conditions of work, and includes any person acting directly
or indirectly as an employer or as an agent of an employer
in relation to an employee but does not include the United
States or any corporation wholly owned by the Government
of the United States or any State or political subdivision
thereof.
(f) ‘Employee’ means any individual employed by an
employer, and includes any individual whose work has
ceased as a consequence of, or in connection with, any
current labor dispute or because of any unfair labor
practice or because of exclusion or expulsion from a labor
organization in any manner or for any reason inconsistent
with the requirements of this Act.

NOTE: Upon registering with OLMS, the signatories and
preparers must enter the email addresses they use to
conduct consultant business, in order to file the form via
the OLMS Electronic Forms System. While the email
addresses will not appear on the report, OLMS may use
the email address of the signatories and any preparers
to contact the consultant concerning LMRDA
compliance.

‘Labor dispute’ includes any controversy concerning terms,
tenure, or conditions of employment, or concerning the
association or representation of persons in negotiating,
fixing, maintaining, changing, or seeking to arrange terms
or conditions of employment, regardless of whether the
disputants stand in the proximate relation of employer and
employee.
4

(i) ‘Labor organization’ means a labor organization
engaged in an industry affecting commerce and includes
any organization of any kind, any agency, or employee
representation committee, group, association, or plan so
engaged in which employees participate and which exits
for the purpose, in whole or in part, or dealing with
employers concerning grievances, labor disputes, wages,
rates of pay, hours or other terms or conditions of
employment, and any conference, general committee, joint
or system board, or joint council so engaged which is
subordinate to a national or international labor
organization, other than a State or local central body. A
labor organization shall be deemed to be engaged in an
industry affecting commerce if it—

(1) to persuade employees to exercise or
not to exercise, or persuade employees as
to the manner of exercising, the right to
organize and bargain collectively through
representatives of their own choosing; or
(2) to supply an employer with information
concerning the activities of employees or a
labor organization in connection with a
labor dispute involving such employer,
except information for use solely in
conjunction with an administrative or
arbitral proceeding or a criminal or civil
judicial proceeding;
shall file within thirty days after entering into such
agreement or arrangement a report with the Secretary,
signed by its president and treasurer or corresponding
principal officers, containing the name under which such
person is engaged in doing business and the address of
its principal office, and a detailed statement of the terms
and conditions of such agreement or arrangement.
Every such person shall file annually, with respect to
each fiscal year during which payments were made as a
result of such an agreement or arrangement, a report
with the Secretary, signed by its president and treasurer
or corresponding principal officers, containing a
statement (A) of its receipts of any kind from employers
on account of labor relations advice or services,
designating the sources thereof, and (B) of its
disbursements of any kind, in connection with such
services and the purposes thereof. In each such case
such information shall be set forth in such categories as
the Secretary may prescribe.

(1) is the certified representative of employees
under the provisions of the National Labor
Relations Act, as amended, or the Railway
Labor Act, as amended; or
(2) although not certified, is a national or
international labor organization or a local labor
organization recognized or acting as the
representative of employees of an employer or
employers engaged in an industry affecting
commerce; or
(3) has chartered a local labor organization or
subsidiary body which is representing or
actively seeking to represent employees of
employers within the meaning of paragraph
(1) or (2); or
(4) has been chartered by a labor organization
representing or actively seeking to represent
employees within the meaning of paragraph (1)
or (2) as the local or subordinate body through
which such employees may enjoy membership
or become affiliated with such labor
organization; or

Section 204.
Nothing contained In this Act shall be construed to
require an attorney who is a member in good standing
of the bar of any State, to include In any report required
to be filed pursuant to the provisions of this Act any
information which was lawfully communicated to such
attorney by any of his clients in the course of a
legitimate attorney-client relationship.

(5) is a conference, general committee, and
joint or system board. or joint council,
subordinate to a national or international labor
organization, which includes a labor
organization engaged in an industry affecting
commerce within the meaning of any of the
preceding paragraphs of this subsection, other
than a State or local central body.

NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS ACT
Section 8(c).

Section 203.

The expressing of any views, argument, or opinion, or
the discussion thereof, whether in written, printed,
graphic, or visual form, shall not constitute or be
evidence of an unfair labor practice under any of the
provisions of this Act, if such expression contains no
threat of reprisal or force or promise of benefit.

(b) Every person who pursuant to any agreement or
arrangement with an employer undertakes activities
where an object thereof is, directly or indirectly-

5

If You Need Assistance
The Office of Labor-Management Standards has field
offices located in the following cities to assist you if
you have any questions concerning the LMRDA
reporting requirements.
Atlanta-Nashville
Boston-Buffalo
Chicago
Cincinnati-Cleveland
Dallas-New Orleans
Denver-St. Louis
Detroit-Milwaukee
Los Angeles
Philadelphia-Pittsburgh
New York
San Francisco-Seattle
Washington
Copies of labor organization annual financial reports,
employer reports, and labor relations consultant
reports filed for the year 2000 and after can be
viewed and printed at http://www.unionreports.gov.
Copies of reports for the year 1999 and earlier can
be ordered through the website.
Information about OLMS, including key personnel
and telephone numbers, compliance assistance
materials, the text of the LMRDA, and related Federal
Register and Code of Federal Regulations (CFR)
documents, is also available on the Internet at: http://
www.olms.dol.gov.
Additionally, you can call the OLMS national office at
(202) 693-0123.

Revised XX/2021

6