New York Enacts Personnel Records Access Law for Employees

16 September 2026
View Debevoise Update
Key Takeaways:
  • Effective November 8, 2026, Section 210-b of the New York Labor Law will require New York employers to provide current and former employees with copies of their personnel records within five business days of a written request, notify employees within 10 days when negative information is added to their records, and respond to challenges by employees who dispute the inclusion of negative information in their file.
  • Amendments to Section 210-b are anticipated in the 2027 legislative session to clarify that employers are not required to create personnel files or produce records they do not already maintain, and to define more precisely which records constitute a personnel file subject to the statute.
  • Employers should review personnel record practices and retention policies, establish procedures for responding to access requests in compliance with the new law, and train managers and HR staff on the new requirements.

New York employers will soon be required to provide employees significantly greater access to their personnel records. On September 9, 2026, Governor Kathy Hochul signed S3460 into law as Chapter 293, adding Section 210-b to the New York Labor Law. The law is currently scheduled to take effect on November 8, 2026, and, as enacted, requires employers to provide current and former employees with copies of broadly defined personnel records within five business days of a written request, notify employees within ten days when certain negative information is added to their personnel records, and comply with new requirements concerning employee challenges and rebuttals, record retention and retaliation.

Notably, Governor Hochul issued an approval memorandum identifying ambiguities in the law and stating that she had reached an agreement with the Legislature to address them in the upcoming legislative session. The memorandum specifically contemplates clarifying that employers need not create personnel files or produce documents beyond those they currently maintain, and that personnel files include only records used to make specified employment decisions. Although amendments are therefore expected, employers should begin preparing for the law’s core personnel record access and notice requirements while monitoring further developments.

The New York statute was modeled on Massachusetts’ personnel records law, Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 149, § 52C, but differs from that statute in certain respects, including with respect to employer coverage, employee access to copies of personnel records and express anti-retaliation protections.

KEY PROVISIONS OF SECTION 210-B

Covered Employers

The statute broadly covers both private and public employers, defining “employer” to include any individual, corporation, partnership, labor organization, unincorporated association or other legal business entity, as well as agents of such employers. Although the statute does not expressly address its geographic scope, employers should consider preparing to comply with respect to employees who work in New York, including employees who work remotely from New York.

Access to Personnel Records

Upon written request, employers must provide current and former employees with a copy of their personnel records, at no cost, within five business days. The law limits employee review of a personnel record to twice per calendar year, but a review resulting from the addition of negative information does not count toward that limit.

The law defines “personnel record” broadly to cover records identifying an employee that are used, have been used, may affect or may be used in connection with decisions concerning the employee’s qualifications for employment, promotion, transfer, additional compensation or disciplinary action. Covered records may include records maintained by third-parties under contract with the employer. The law excludes personal information concerning another individual where disclosure would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of that individual’s privacy.

“Personnel records” expressly include, among other things:

  • the employee’s name, address, date of birth;
  • the employee’s job title and job description;
  • rate of pay and other compensation, as well as the employee’s starting date;
  • job applications, resumes, and other employment inquiry materials submitted by the employee in response to the employer’s job posting;
  • performance evaluations and related evaluation documents;
  • written warnings concerning substandard performance;
  • list of probationary periods;
  • waivers signed by the employee;
  • copies of dated termination notices; and
  • other documents relating to disciplinary action concerning the employee.

Notice of Negative Information

Employers must notify an employee within ten days after placing information in the employee’s personnel record that is, has been or may be used to negatively affect the employee’s qualifications for employment, promotion, transfer, additional compensation or the possibility of disciplinary action. The statute does not define when information is considered “placed” in an employee’s personnel record for purposes of triggering the ten-day notice period.

Employee Challenges to Personnel Records

Employees will have the right to challenge negative information placed in their personnel records. An employer and employee may mutually agree to correct or remove disputed information. If they cannot reach agreement, the employee may submit a written statement explaining their position, which becomes part of the personnel record. If the disputed information is subsequently transmitted to a third-party while the original information remains in the file, the employee’s statement must accompany it.

If an employer places information in a personnel record that the employer knew or should have known was false, the employee may seek to have that information expunged through a collective bargaining agreement, other personnel procedures, or judicial process.

Record Retention and Personnel Policies

Employers must retain an employee’s complete personnel record, without deletions or expungement, from the date of employment until three years after termination, subject to the law’s provisions permitting the removal or correction of information.

In addition, if an employer maintains a written personnel policy concerning the terms and conditions of employment, the policy, as amended from time to time, must be continuously maintained at the office where personnel matters are administered.

Collective Bargaining Agreements

The law does not supersede the terms of a collective bargaining agreement that provides employees with at least substantially similar access to their personnel records.

Anti-Retaliation Protections

Employers and other persons may not discharge, threaten, penalize, discriminate or otherwise retaliate against an employee for exercising rights under the law. The statute expressly provides that prohibited retaliation includes threatening to contact or contacting U.S. immigration authorities, or otherwise reporting or threatening to report to a federal, state or local agency, the suspected citizenship or immigration status of an employee or the employee’s family or household member.

Enforcement and Penalties

The law is enforceable by the New York Attorney General. Violations are subject to fines ranging from $500 to $2,500.

NEXT STEPS FOR EMPLOYERS

In light of the November 8 effective date and the amendments contemplated by the Governor’s approval memorandum, we recommend considering taking the following steps:

  • Review personnel-record practices and retention. Consider whether existing recordkeeping practices capture the categories of records potentially covered by the law and whether those records can be readily identified. For employers that already maintain centralized personnel files, this may require little more than confirming that potentially covered records are consistently captured and accessible. Where relevant records may instead reside with managers, in other internal systems, or with third-party service providers, such as professional employer organizations (PEOs), consider identifying those sources and how records would be collected. Employers should also assess existing retention practices against the law’s requirements, while keeping in mind that anticipated amendments may affect those requirements.
  • Prepare for personnel-record requests. Consider establishing or updating procedures for receiving, tracking and responding to requests from current and former employees within the five-business-day period. Among other things, employers may wish to identify who will be responsible for coordinating responses and how potentially responsive records will be collected and reviewed, including for information concerning other individuals that may be subject to the law’s privacy exclusion.
  • Develop a process for negative-information notices and employee challenges. Consider how HR will be alerted when potentially covered negative information is added to an employee’s personnel record so that the required notice can be provided within ten days. The process should also address how employee challenges, agreed-upon corrections or removals, and written rebuttals will be handled and maintained with the relevant records.
  • Train managers and HR personnel. Consider training managers and HR staff on the new requirements, including what constitutes “negative information” that triggers the ten-day notice obligation, the five-business-day response deadline for access requests, and who is responsible for providing the required notices. Managers who document performance issues or disciplinary matters should understand the relevant scope of information that “is, has been used or may be used, to negatively affect” an employee’s qualifications for employment, promotion, transfer, additional compensation, or the possibility of disciplinary action.
  • Monitor for amendments in the 2027 legislative session. Given that Governor Hochul's approval memorandum identifies concerns with aspects of the law and contemplates amendments, employers should closely monitor the 2027 New York legislative session for any changes to Section 210-b. Amendments could affect the scope of covered records, timing requirements, enforcement mechanisms or other key provisions. Consider designating responsibility for tracking these developments and updating compliance procedures as needed.

 

This publication is for general information purposes only. It is not intended to provide, nor is it to be used as, a substitute for legal advice. In some jurisdictions it may be considered attorney advertising.

Practices

Regions

Authors: