Overview
On September 9, 2026, Governor Kathy Hochul signed Senate Bill 3460, adding new Labor Law §210-b. Closely modeled on Massachusetts’ Personnel Record Law, the statute takes effect November 8, 2026—one month from now.
For the first time, New York employees have a formal right to obtain and respond to information in their personnel records. Many employers already provide current employees with copies of certain documents in the normal course of business, such as official performance evaluations. However, the law defines what the personnel record must include, imposes procedures and deadlines for compliance, and extends access rights to former employees. New York will join several other states that expressly allow employees to access their “personnel record.”
Legislative Purpose
According to the Introducer’s Memorandum in Support, the bill aims to give all workers in the state a fair opportunity to review their personnel records and be notified when a negative report is filed against them. The memorandum explains that the bill “seeks to emulate Massachusetts in recognizing the basic right of employees to know what kind of reports are being officially filed about them and how this will impact their future employment prospects,” and to allow employees to seek correction or removal of information they dispute.
What employers need to know
What Counts as a “Personnel Record”?
Section 210-b defines “personnel record” as “a record kept by an employer that identifies an employee, to the extent that the record is used or has been used or may affect or be used relative to that employee’s qualifications for employment, promotion, transfer, additional compensation or disciplinary action.”
Governor Hochul reportedly expressed concern about ambiguity in this phrasing; the expected chapter amendment discussed below may clarify this point. Until then, employers are hopeful that the Department of Labor (DOL) will issue guidance confirming that this definition reaches only the records an employer actually maintains and relies on as its official personnel record when making the listed decisions, as opposed to a broader universe of documents.
For now, the personnel record also includes records held by a third party (such as an outside HR or payroll vendor) that has a contract with the employer to keep or supply personnel records. It does not include personal information about someone other than the employee if disclosing it would be a clearly unwarranted invasion of that person’s privacy.
Without limiting the general definition, the statute lists certain written information or documents that are included in the scope of an employee’s “personnel record,” including, to the extent prepared by an employer regarding an employee:
- Name, address, date of birth, job title, and job description
- Rate of pay and any other compensation paid to the employee
- Starting date of employment
- The job application of the employee
- Resumes or other forms of employment inquiry submitted to the employer in response to the employer’s advertisement by the employee
- All employee performance evaluations, including employee evaluation documents
- Written warnings of substandard performance
- Lists of probationary periods
- Waivers signed by the employee
- Copies of dated termination notices
- Any other documents relating to disciplinary action regarding the employee
Employee Access Rights
Employees and former employees may make a written request for a copy of their personnel record. Under Subdivision 2 of the statute, the employer must provide the copy at no cost to the employee within five business days of receiving the written request.
An employer must also “notify an employee within ten days of the employer placing in the employee’s personnel record any information to the extent that the information is, has been used or may be used, to negatively affect the employee’s qualification for employment, promotion, transfer, additional compensation or the possibility that the employee will be subject to disciplinary action.”
Again, the governor reportedly expressed concerns about potential ambiguity in this phrasing, and the expected chapter amendment discussed below may clarify this point. Until then, employers are hopeful that the DOL will issue guidance confirming that this definition applies to the records an employer actually maintains and relies on as its official personnel record when making the listed decisions, and not every document that mentions the employee in an arguably negative light.
Employees will have the right to review their personnel record twice per year. However, a notification and review triggered by the placement of negative information in the record does not count toward the two annual reviews.
Disputes and Corrections
Under Subdivision 3 of the statute, if an employee disagrees with any information in the personnel record, the employer and employee may mutually agree to remove or correct it. If they cannot agree, the employee may submit a written statement explaining their position, which becomes part of the personnel record. That statement must be included whenever the disputed information is transmitted to a third party, as long as the original information is retained in the file.
Record Retention
Under Subdivision 4, employers must retain each employee’s complete personnel record, “without deletions or expungement of information,” from the date of hire until three years after the employee’s employment ends.
Non-Retaliation
Under Subdivision 8, no employer or other person may discharge, threaten, penalize, or otherwise discriminate or retaliate against an employee for exercising rights under the statute.
Impacts and next steps
Penalties
Under Subdivision 7, any violation by an employer or any other person is punishable by a fine of $500 to $2,500, and the attorney general enforces the statute.
Expected Amendments
In her approval memo, Governor Hochul noted ambiguities and announced an agreement with the Legislature to address these through chapter amendments. Those amendments are expected to clarify that employers are not required to create a personnel file or produce documents beyond those currently maintained, and that personnel files include only records used to determine qualifications for hiring, retention, promotion, transfer, compensation, or disciplinary action. If the law is amended, changes are not expected to occur until after the November 8, 2026, effective date.
Employer Action
Although amendments are expected, employers must still comply with Section 210-b as currently written by the November 8, 2026, effective date—now just one month away. Employers should begin taking the following steps.
- Consult with legal counsel. Work with counsel to determine how the statute and potentially ambiguous terms flagged above apply to your organization and monitor the expected chapter amendments, which may change obligations after November 8, 2026.
- Define and inventory the personnel record. Identify every location where records meeting the statutory definition are kept, including records held by any vendor with a “contractual agreement with the employer to keep or supply a personnel record.”
- Update policies and procedures. Adopt written procedures for receiving “written request[s]”; producing copies “at no cost to the employee, within five business days”; giving notice “within ten days” of placing negative information in the record; tracking the two-per-calendar-year review limit; accepting and attaching employee rebuttal statements; redacting third-party personal information; and retaining records for three years after termination. Update any written personnel policy and ensure it is “continuously maintained at the office of such employer where personnel matters are administered.”
- Review vendor agreements and electronic systems. Confirm that HR, payroll, and HRIS vendors can retrieve records within the five-business-day period, and that electronic systems preserve records without unilateral deletion.
- Train supervisors and human resources managers. Instruct how to recognize and route written requests; identify documents that trigger the 10-day notice obligation; document performance, and discipline accurately and factually; and avoid any conduct that could be viewed as retaliation, including any reference to an employee’s or family member’s immigration status.
- Review collective bargaining agreements. Unionized employers should compare existing CBA provisions to the statute to assess whether they provide “at least substantially similar access.”