New York Legislature Passes Bill That Would Entitle Employees To Broad Access To Personnel Records

During the 2025-2026 New York Legislative Session, both houses of the NY Legislature passed a bill (S3460) that would amend the New York Labor Law to grant employees the right to access their personnel records and require employers to notify employees when negative information is placed in their personnel files. Employers should review this proposed legislation and assess what changes may be required to their policies and practices if the bill becomes law.

Employee access and notice of negative information

If enacted, the law would require employers to provide employees with a copy of their personnel record at no cost to the employee within five business days of the employee’s written request. Notably, the proposed law would limit such access to two separate occasions per calendar year.

In addition, employers would be required to notify employees within 10 days of placing in their personnel record any information used, or that may be used, to negatively affect their qualifications for employment, promotion, transfer, additional compensation or the possibility of disciplinary action. Upon such notice, employees would be permitted to make a personnel record request, which would not count toward their two-review annual limit.

Under the bill, the term “employee” is defined to include both current and former employees. And “personnel record” is defined broadly as a record kept by an employer that identifies an employee, to the extent that the record has been or may be used or otherwise affect that employee’s qualifications for employment, promotion, transfer, additional compensation, or disciplinary action. The bill specifies that the following documents, among others, must be included in an employee’s personnel record: the employee’s name, address, date of birth, job title, job description, compensation, hire date, job applications, resumes, performance evaluations, written warnings and any other documents relating to disciplinary action. 

Unfortunately, it is not clear from the bill’s language whether every document that “may affect or be used” to negatively impact an employment decision would be required to be maintained in the personnel record. For example, should each email sent by a manager to a human resources representative about an employee’s unsatisfactory performance be included in the personnel record? Or is the performance warning or improvement plan that may ultimately be prepared for the employee sufficient? Would each instance of placing such emails in the personnel record trigger the requirement to notify the employee? If the bill becomes law, such questions will need to await further guidance or, potentially, litigation.

Recordkeeping and retention

The bill would mandate that employers retain the complete personnel record of any employee, without deletions, from the date of employment through three years after the termination of the employment relationship.

Dispute resolution and anti-retaliation protections

Under the bill, if an employee disagrees with any information contained in their personnel record, the employer and employee may mutually agree to remove or correct the disputed information. If no agreement is reached, the employee may submit a written statement explaining their position, which must be made a part of the personnel record. 

If an employer places information in a personnel record that the employer knew or should have known to be false, the employee may seek expungement of such information by filing a lawsuit. The bill prohibits employers from discriminating or retaliating against any employee who exercises the rights provided under the proposed law.

Enforcement and penalties

The bill provides that any violation by an employer or any other person would be punishable by a fine of between $500 and $2,500. Enforcement authority is vested in the New York Attorney General.

Effective date

The bill has not been sent to Gov. Kathy Hochul’s desk for signature, and it is unclear when (if ever) the Legislature will deliver the bill. If it is signed, the bill will take effect 60 days thereafter.

What employers should do now

Employers should consider the steps they will take to comply with the bill if it is enacted into law, including the following potential action items: 

• Audit and update personnel recordkeeping practices to ensure all required documents are captured within personnel files and that records are maintained in compliance with the proposed retention requirements.
• Develop or update procedures for responding to employee requests for personnel records within the five-business-day window.
• Establish a notification protocol for alerting employees within 10 days when negative information is added to their personnel records.