Background
On September 9, 2026, Governor Kathy Hochul signed Senate Bill S3460, which amends the New York Labor Law, granting current and former employees access to their personnel records. The law, which goes into effect on November 8, 2026, defines “personnel record” broadly as a “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. This includes, but is not limited to, the name, address, date of birth, job title and description for the employee; rate of pay and 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 for employment; and all performance evaluations.”
Requirements
The law also imposes significant requirements on employers, including the following:
- Employers must provide access to the personnel records within five (5) business days of a written request by an employee, with no cost to the employee.
- Employers must notify employees within ten (10) days after placing any information in the employee’s personnel record “to the extent that the information is, has been used or may be used, to negatively affect the employee’s qualifications for employment, promotion, transfer, additional compensation or the possibility that the employee will be subject to disciplinary action.”
- If there is a disagreement with the information contained in the personnel record, removal or correction of such information may be mutually agreed upon by the employer or employee. However, if an agreement is not reached, the employee may submit a written statement explaining the employee’s position, which shall become a part of the personnel record.
- An employer is not required to allow an employee to review the employee’s personnel record more than two times per calendar year. However, notification and review will not be “deemed to be one of the two annual permitted reviews” if such notification and review was “caused by the placing of negative information in the personnel record.”
Retaliation against any employees who exercise their rights under the law is prohibited, and employers who violate the law are subject to fines, enforced by the New York Attorney General, ranging between $500 to $2500.
Key Takeaways
Employers will need to prepare for the increased requirements imposed by this law. Such preparation should include reviewing and updating existing policies to ensure compliance with the law, establishing protocols for employees to request their personnel records, and training management and human resources personnel on the law’s requirements.
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