Employee Files (Personnel Records) Policy

Company: [Company Name] · Effective Date: [Date]

Purpose

This policy establishes what records are maintained in an employee's personnel file, how they're stored, and who may access them.

What's Included

The general personnel file includes: [offer letter, performance reviews, disciplinary records, training records, acknowledgment forms]. Separate, more restricted files are maintained for: [ ] medical information (kept confidential, separate from the general file, per ADA/HIPAA requirements) [ ] I-9 forms (kept separately per federal requirements) [ ] payroll/benefits records.

Access

[HR and the employee's direct manager] have access to the general personnel file on a need-to-know basis. [Medical records access is further restricted to [specific roles].]

Employee's Right to Review

Employees may request to review their own personnel file [ ] at any time [ ] a limited number of times per year, per [applicable state law, which in some states grants a specific legal right to review and copy one's own file].

Retention

Personnel files are retained for [Period, e.g. 7 years] after employment ends, consistent with applicable record retention requirements.

Security

Personnel files are stored [securely, physically locked / access-controlled electronically], with access logged where records are digital.

Amendments

Employees may request correction of factual errors in their file; disputed entries may include the employee's written response attached to the record.

Adopted by: ______________________ Date: ____________

*This document is provided for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Keeping medical information in a SEPARATE, more restricted file (not mixed into the general personnel file) isn't just best practice — the ADA specifically requires this separation for any medical information an employer collects, regardless of how the information was obtained.*