Until now, New York employers generally had no statutory obligation to let employees inspect their own personnel files. That changes on November 8, 2026, when new Labor Law § 210-b takes effect. The law gives every current and former employee the right to obtain a free copy of their personnel record on written request, requires employers to notify employees when negative information is added to their files, and imposes record-retention duties that run three years past separation. There is no minimum employee-count threshold: employers of all sizes are covered.
What Changes for Employers?
Access Requests. Provide a free copy of the employee’s personnel record within five business days of a written request. Employers may limit routine reviews to two per calendar year; reviews prompted by a negative-information notice do not count toward that cap.
- Negative Information. Notify employees within 10 days whenever information is placed in the file that is, has been, or may be used to negatively affect the employee’s qualifications for employment, promotion, transfer, or additional compensation, or that may subject the employee to discipline.
This proactive notice is a significant departure from prior practice because supervisors often create performance and disciplinary documents before they formally enter a file, and the statute does not define when information is “placed.”
- Disputes and Rebuttals. Employers and employees may mutually agree to remove or correct disputed information. Otherwise, employees may submit a written statement of their position (“rebuttal”) that becomes part of the record and accompany the disputed information when sent to third parties. Information in the file that the employer knew or should have known was false may be expunged through personnel procedures, a collective bargaining agreement, or court proceedings.
- Recordkeeping. Preserve complete personnel records, without deletion or expungement, except as the law permits, from hire through three years after separation. Maintain records in typewritten or printed form, or handwritten in indelible ink, and keep written personnel policies (and any amendments) on file where personnel matters are administered.
What Counts as a “Personnel Record”?
A “personnel record” is broadly defined as any record an employer keeps, which is used, has been used, or may be used in connection with an employee’s qualifications for employment, promotion, transfer, additional compensation, or disciplinary action. The definition expressly reaches records held by a third party under contract with the employer to keep or supply such records, e.g. a payroll processor, staffing firm, or PEO.
The law lists specific categories that must be treated as part of the record, to the extent the employer prepared them for the employee:
- Name, address, date of birth, job title, and description;
- Rate of pay and any other compensation;
- Starting date of employment;
- Job application, resumes, and employment inquiries submitted in response to an employer advertisement;
- All performance evaluations and written warnings of substandard performance;
- Lists of probationary periods;
- Waivers signed by the employee;
- Dated termination notices; and
- Any other documents relating to disciplinary action.
What is Excluded?
A personnel record does not include personal information about someone other than the employee if disclosing it would be a clearly unwarranted invasion of that other person’s privacy. This carve-out may cover certain investigation materials or witness statements that contain personal information about third parties, though its precise reach is untested.
Enforcement and Anti-Retaliation
Violations are punishable by fines of $500 to $2,500 per violation, enforced by the New York Attorney General. There is no general private right of action: employees cannot sue directly for a violation, apart from the expungement remedy for knowingly false information.
Separately, discharging, threatening, penalizing, or otherwise retaliating against employees for exercising these rights is prohibited, including contacting or threatening to contact immigration authorities about an employee or a family or household member.
Anticipated Amendment
When Governor Hochul signed the law, she issued an approval memorandum flagging ambiguities and indicating they would be addressed in a future legislative session. An amendment is expected to clarify that employers need not create a personnel file or produce documents beyond what they already maintain, and to narrow the definition of “personnel record” to documents actually used in qualification and disciplinary decisions. Until that amendment is enacted, however, the statute as written controls.
Preparing for Compliance and How Garfunkel Wild Can Help
Garfunkel Wild recommends that employers take the following steps in advance of the November 8, 2026 effective date. Our Employment and Workforce Management team is available to assist in implementing these measures.
- Train and Update Policies. Train managers, supervisors, and human resources staff on the new access, notice, and rebuttal requirements. Update employee handbooks and internal policies to reflect these rights.
- Audit and Consolidate Records. Inventory every location where employee information is maintained, including manager files, filing cabinets, and digital repositories, and work toward building a single, organized file per employee that covers all enumerated categories. Garfunkel Wild can provide guidance on best practices for conducting this audit and structuring personnel files.
- Designate Intake Staff. Assign specific personnel to receive, log, and timely respond to written personnel-record requests
- Confirm Vendor Readiness. Verify that payroll providers, staffing firms, PEOs, and HR-technology vendors can locate and transmit responsive records within the five-day deadline, and build that obligation into vendor contracts.
- Incorporate into Policy the 10-day notice. Add a notification step to performance-review, disciplinary, and corrective-action workflows to ensure employees receive timely notice whenever negative information is placed in their files.
- Build a Rebuttal Process. Create a procedure to accept employee written statements, append them to the record, and ensure they accompany any later third-party disclosure of the disputed material.
- Update Retention Schedules. Confirm files are preserved without deletion for at least three years after separation.
- Monitor for Amendments and Guidance. Further legislative clarification is anticipated. Garfunkel Wild will continue to monitor and is available to advise on any amendments or regulatory guidance as they emerge.
Please be on the look out for an upcoming Garfunkel Wild training webinar on this topic.
Should you have any questions regarding the above, please contact the authors, the Garfunkel Wild attorney with whom you regularly work, or email us at [email protected].