New York Poised to Require Employee Access to Personnel Files: 7 Things Employers Need to Know
New York employers should prepare for significant new obligations concerning employee access to personnel files. The New York Legislature just passed a bill that could soon grant current and former employees broad rights to obtain copies of personnel records, require employers to notify employees when certain negative information is placed in their files, impose personnel-record retention obligations, and prohibit retaliation against employees who exercise their rights under the law. The bill would also apply to certain personnel records maintained by third-party vendors, creating additional compliance challenges for employers that rely on outsourced HR, payroll, or personnel-management functions. If signed by Governor Hochul, the law would take effect 60 days later. Here are the seven key takeaways for employers and seven steps you should consider taking now to prepare.
7 Key Takeaways for Employers
1. Current and Former Employees Are Covered
Both current and former employees would be covered under the law. As a result, if the law is enacted, employers should expect that personnel-file requests may come not only from active employees, but also from former employees, including those involved in separation negotiations, agency charges, litigation, or post-employment disputes.
2. “Personnel Record” Includes a Wide Range of Employment Documents
The bill defines “personnel record” broadly. It includes records kept by an employer that identify an employee and are used or may be used with respect to the employee’s qualifications for employment, promotion, transfer, additional compensation, or disciplinary action. The bill identifies job applications, resumes, job titles and descriptions, pay and compensation information, start dates, performance evaluations, written warnings, probationary-period lists, waivers signed by the employee, termination notices, and other disciplinary records, as falling within the definition of personnel records. Certain personal information about individuals other than the employee – where disclosure would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of privacy – is excluded.
The bill expressly extends to personnel records maintained by third parties that have contractual agreements with the employer to keep or supply such records. Employers should therefore inventory records maintained by HR vendors, payroll providers, professional employer organizations, benefits administrators, or other service providers to determine whether those records may be subject to employee requests.
3. Employers Will Have Short Deadlines to Produce Records
Unlike the laws in some states that permit only inspection, the bill would require employers to provide employees with a copy of their personnel records upon request. Upon receiving a written request, employers would have just five business days to provide the copy, at no cost to the employee.
Employers would not need to allow an employee to review personnel records more than twice per calendar year, although a review prompted by the placement of negative information would not count against that annual limit.
4. Employers Will Need to Notify Employees of Negative Personnel File Entries
The bill would require an employer to notify an employee within 10 days of placing in the employee’s personnel record any information that may be used to negatively affect the employee’s qualifications for employment, promotion, transfer, additional compensation, or the possibility of disciplinary action.
5. Employees Will Have a Right to Respond to Disputed Information
If an employee disagrees with information contained in a personnel record, the employer and employee may agree to remove or correct the information. If no agreement is reached, the employee would be allowed to submit a written statement explaining the employee’s position. That statement would then become part of the personnel record and included if the disputed information is transmitted to a third party, so long as the original information remains part of the file.
If an employer places information in a personnel record that the employer knew or should have known to be false, the employee would be able to seek expungement through a collective bargaining agreement, other personnel procedures, or judicial process.
6. Retention and Policy-Maintenance Obligations
Employers would be required to retain the complete personnel record of each employee from the date of employment until three years after termination, without deletions or expungement of information. Employers that maintain written personnel policies would also be required to continuously maintain those policies at the office where personnel matters are administered.
7. Violations Could Trigger Fines and Attorney General Enforcement
Violation of the law could result in fines ranging from $500 to $2,500, with enforcement by the New York Attorney General. The bill would also prohibit employers from discharging, threatening, penalizing, discriminating against, or otherwise retaliating against employees who exercise their rights under law.
7 Employer Action Items to Prepare
Governor Hochul must still decide whether to sign or veto the legislation. If enacted, New York would join a growing number of states that provide employees with statutory rights to access personnel records. Although the bill has not yet been signed into law, employers may want to begin assessing their readiness now given the proposed five-business-day production deadline and other operational requirements. Employers should start preparing for the reality that personnel files may soon be an open book in New York. Here are seven steps to consider taking now:
1. Review Personnel-File Practices and Record Locations: Identify what documents are maintained as part of employee personnel files, where those documents are stored, who has access to them, and whether any responsive records are maintained outside the employer’s primary HR system. This review should include records maintained by managers, legal, payroll, benefits, third-party vendors, and any entities acting as agents of the employer.
2. Create a Written Request and Response Process: Because the bill would require production within five business days after a written request, you should consider establishing a standardized intake and response process. This may include a designated email address or form for requests, an internal escalation protocol, a checklist for identifying responsive records, and a quality-control review before production.
3. Prepare a Negative-Information Notice Protocol: Develop a process for identifying when information placed in a personnel file could negatively affect employment, promotion, transfer, compensation, or disciplinary outcomes. Managers and HR staff should be trained to provide timely notice within the proposed 10-day period and document when notice was provided.
4. Update Record-Retention Policies: Confirm that personnel records are retained for at least three years after employment ends. Avoid informal deletion, expungement, or alteration.
5. Audit Third-Party Vendor Agreements: Because records maintained by certain third parties may be deemed personnel records under the bill, you should evaluate whether vendors possess covered records and whether contractual arrangements permit timely retrieval of those records. Contracts with HR providers, payroll companies, PEOs, staffing agencies, benefits administrators, and document-management vendors should be reviewed to ensure that records can be retrieved quickly enough to meet the five-business-day production deadline.
6. Train HR, Managers, and Employee Relations Teams: Train staff who create, maintain, or transmit employee records on the bill’s requirements, including the definition of personnel records, the notice obligation for negative information, employee response rights, retention requirements, and anti-retaliation protections. You may also wish to review manager training regarding performance documentation, as records used in connection with promotion, compensation, performance management, or discipline may ultimately be subject to employee review.
7. Coordinate with Counsel Before Producing Sensitive Records: Personnel files may contain privileged communications, confidential business information, medical information, or information relating to other employees. You should consider developing a review protocol to assess whether any information should be withheld or redacted, including information of a personal nature about someone other than the employee where disclosure would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of privacy.
Conclusion
Fisher Phillips will continue to monitor this bill and any further developments in this area as they occur, so you should ensure you are subscribed to Fisher Phillips’ Insight System to gather the most up-to-date information. If you have any questions, please contact your Fisher Phillips attorney, the authors of this Insight, or any attorney in our New York City office.
Source(s):
New York Poised to Require Employee Access to Personnel Files: 7 Things Employers Need to Know. (2026). Fisher Phillips; Fisher Phillips LLP. https://www.fisherphillips.com/en/insights/insights/new-york-poised-to-require-employee-access-to-personnel-files